Harry Potter and the Year of Enlightenment
by chicanosurfer01
Summary: Harry's 6th year. Deciding not to be the one who’s killed, he starts training. New Powers, New toys from the Potter Family and a recurring dream about elements and a test. Will be HG, may have Harry involved with other girls. PG13, rating may change.
1. Prologue: Preparations and Realizations

Disclaimer: Everything in this Fic, except for the plot (that's mine), belongs to J.K. Rowling. This is just to show that I'm not taking credit and so that I will not get sued : ).

A/N: Just to warn you. This is my first ever Fanfic so I hope I don't disappoint you. I wrote this in about an hour at work so... it might not be my best. R and R and tell me what you think so that maybe I can change it up and make the rest of the story more interesting. After all, who better to tell me what to do than the readers? Dedicated to ChristinWeast who first told me to try writing a while ago. Without further delay ... my first Fanfic.

**PREPARATIONS AND REALIZATIONS  
BY: CHICANOSURFER01**

Have you ever felt different from everyone else around you and then realize that there are reasons for your differences or a specific purpose to help you run the road of your life? Well this is the story of a very different young man going into his sixth year of magical schooling, and believe me when I say that having attended a magic school is just one of his minor differences.

This young man's name is known around the world for something he doesn't even remember doing. Even you probably know the name, _Harry Potter. _Harry is an extraordinary wizard that just happened to banish the dark lord, Voldemort. Even more amazing is that he did it at the age of one! What not many know is that, for what he is destined to do, this is just a form of child's play.

This story begins on the second day of young Harry's summer vacation before his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We find our hero looking out of his window at the stars, having decided to not try and change the unchangeable with the death of his godfather. Yes Harry was definitely depressed about his godfather but had other things to worry about first; like his life.

"_...Neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the dark lord... He will have power the dark lord knows not..._" Harry repeated this to himself for at least the hundredth time that night. 'I need to train. I need to train if I'm ever going to find this _power,_' he thought, 'I need to survive. If not for me then for the wizarding world in general.' "First off," Harry said to himself, "I need a training schedule for myself and be organized about this."

So Harry pulled out a piece of parchment and started scribbling out what looked like a very busy schedule for the rest of his summer.

5:00 A.M. --- 6:30 A.M. RUNNING AND FLEXIBILITY TRAINING

6:30 A.M. --- 7:00 A.M. SHOWER/SHORT REST

7:00 A.M. --- 9:00 A.M. DADA STUDY

9:00 A.M. --- 11:00 A.M. CHARMS STUDY

11:00 A.M. --- 12:00 P.M. LUNCH/SHORT REST

12:00 P.M. --- 2:00 P.M. TRANSFIGURATION STUDY

2:00 P.M. --- 4:00 P.M. ANIMAGUS TRAINING

4:00 P.M. --- 6:00 P.M. MUGGLE DEFENSIVE TRAINING

6:00 P.M. --- 8:00 P.M. WEIGHT TRAINING

8:00 P.M. --- 10:00 P.M. MISCELLANEOUS

10:00 P.M. --- 4:45 A.M. SLEEP

'Well,' thought Harry, 'I'm definitely going to need a trip to Diagon Alley if I'm really going to do this. I'm going to need to buy a lot of stuff to aid me in my training. Good thing the Dursleys aren't taking the Order's warning lightly and will take me to London, tomorrow, hopefully.' so with that thought, Harry Potter went to sleep.


	2. Gringotts and the Family Vault

Disclaimer: I don't own any of this except for the plot. Do you think if I was J.K. I would be here right now? Keep dreaming.

A/N: I tried writing a little more in this chapter. I was going a totally different way than this before, but a lot of ideas popped into my head today at work (we weren't busy at all) and decided to take a new route in my writing. Thanks to Voxenking, Lady of the dragons2 and Dishandpantya for my first ever reviews. Which reminds **me** to remind **you** to R and R.

P.S. Don't worry Dish; I don't think I'm bringing Sirius back, even if he was one of my favorite characters.

**GRINGOTTS AND THE FAMILY VAULT**

**BY:CHICANOSURFER01**

_FIRE, WATER, WIND, EARTH ... A TEST ... THE POWER YOU KNOW NOT WILL COME TO YOU ... FIRST YOU MUST PROVE YOUR WORTHINESS ... YOUR TIME IS COMING ... YOU MUST FACE YOUR DESTINY..." _

Harry woke with a start. "What the hell was that about? What test?" Harry looked over at his clock that read 4:43 and decide he might as well go running, almost forgetting about the dream entirely...almost. 'I have to start training sometime. Better sooner than later.'

With that thought Harry put on an old tracksuit that Dudley never used and started out of the house. He quietly went out the front door and started jogging to the park. Looking around the vandalized park, Harry sighed. Seeing all the vandalizing Dudley and his gang of goons had done to the park was slightly depressing.

"I guess I better do some warm up exercises so that I avoid any cramps." Shaking the feeling off, he started for a large grass hill in the center of the park to do his stretches. Soon, he finished his stretches and ran around the park two times before he got tired and started heading back to Number four. "Man, I thought I was in better shape than this, I better work hard to improve or I'll be dead within the first thirty seconds of a duel!"

After doing some cool down stretches, which included sit-ups and push-ups, he went inside for a quick shower and to cook breakfast for his relatives and himself. Just as Harry was getting finished with breakfast, Uncle Vernon came down and actually asked Harry nicely to be served. Harry, not wanting to ruin his chances for a trip to London, quickly served his uncle and himself.

"um...Uncle Vernon?"

"Yes boy?" Uncle Vernon asked over his newspaper.

"Do you think you could take me into London with you when you go into work?"

Uncle Vernon looked like he was arguing with himself over the question, but finally came to a conclusion.

"Yes, I'll take you with me but make sure to be ready in five minutes and also to tell those freaks...I mean...your _friends_ I did this for you, understood?"

"Yes Uncle Vernon, I'll be right back down." Going quietly but quickly, up to his room Harry went straight for his trunk. "Well I'll definitely need my invisibility cloak and a bag to carry it in, I sure as hell don't want to be seen _too_ much."

Two minutes later Harry went back downstairs to meet with his uncle. "Hurry up boy, I'm leaving."

"Coming Uncle."

The trip to London was mostly uneventful and passed quickly. Harry told his uncle where to drop him off (since only Harry could see the Leaky Cauldron) and told his uncle he would meet him at the same place at 4:30, since his uncle got off of work at that time.

Going into the Leaky Cauldron, Harry walked straight through to the back door and tapped the appropriate bricks for entrance into Diagon Alley.

Being only around 8, Harry was surprised to see the normal hustle and bustle of the Alley already in progress. 'Where to first?' Harry thought to himself. 'I definitely need to refill my money pouch; I better go to Gringotts' Heading to Gringotts, Harry kept his head down and blended with the crowd so he didn't have to worry about being recognized.

Once in Gringotts, Harry went up to the first unoccupied goblin he could see. "Um...excuse me?" tried Harry.

"How may I help you?" glared the goblin.

"I need to make a withdrawal. Here's my key." Harry explained while handing over his key.

"Graphrock! Take this gentlemen and assist to his needs. Make sure to explain the changes to his account."

"Yes sir" conversed the goblins.

"What changes were made to my account?" Harry asked while getting into a cart with Graphrock.

"Well, first of all, since your last appointed legal guardian has been 'incapacitated' he has left you his fortune. Secondly, since you have no appointed guardian you may now access your family vault, which now includes the money in your trust fund and what your late godfather left you."

"Family vault? I didn't even know I had a family vault!"

"Yes well, you weren't supposed to have access to it before you were of age. However, due to certain circumstances, you now do." Harry was about to ask about the contents of the vault but decided to find out for himself when they came to a stop.

"I can not get out of the cart due to the blood magic these vaults work on. You must place your hand on the surface of that podium over there," the goblin pointed to a podium in the middle of what looked like a small marble platform. "You might feel a slight prick, but that is just a test to see what vault you need to go to, depending on whose blood you have in you."

Harry walked up to the podium, slightly nervous, and placed his hand on it, immediately feeling the slight prick.

All of a sudden Harry was looking at mountains of gold, silver, bronze, and jewels. "Merlin! This is actually mine? I knew I was well off, but this is just ridiculous."

Once getting over the initial shock, Harry started to look around a bit and the first thing he noticed was a large glass case behind a mound of gold filled with some (at least as far as he knew) ancestral items.

"Wow, now this stuff could definitely be helpful." Harry was looking at what seemed to be a full set of battle gear. This gear included a description of each item underneath its set place.

**Battle Armor:**

_A complete set of the strongest but lightest dragon-hide armor. Can repel or stop most low level hexes, curses, and charms. Includes vest, lower body armor that reaches from waist to mid-calf, two wand holsters for each arm, and battle boots that additionally repel heat, coldness, wetness, and are like walking on air._

'These are incredible! They look as thin as regular clothes. I could probably wear them underneath my everyday clothing.' thought Harry before he went back to reading.

**Ancestral Swords:**

_These two swords are light-weight but heavy-duty for battle. They are enchanted to stay at their sharpest and to make sword training come easy and naturally. Have been passed down since the first Potters. Come with sheaths that strap to your back or waist._

The two swords were amazingly beautiful with handles that were shaped to look like a phoenix with its wings spread and a dragon spitting fire, also with its wings spread. The handles seemed to be made of a weird metal that had black and silver swirls that seemed to be alive with movement.

**Battle Robes:**

_Ancestral robes that have the potter family crest on the back and the front. Have been worn by every potter that has gone into battle._

The Robes were completely black except for the crests and the silver trim. They had two red, black and silver crests. A small one that covered the heart and a big one that covered the back of the robes. The crest had a black and silver dragon facing what looked like a black and silver wolf with a black and silver phoenix in-flight, between them. The animals and the crest itself were trimmed with a very dark red that made them and the crest look like they radiated power.

**Potter Ring:**

_This ring has also been handed down through every generation of Potters. This ring helps unlock the hidden power and gifts, if any, that its wearer has, over a certain period of time, depending on how much power or gifts the wearer has. Warning: only a Potter can wear this ring for it is only keyed to the potter blood. The effects on a non-Potter wearer vary, but are usually not good._

The ring was pure silver with the potter crest in black on the its face with the figure of each of the three potter crest animals rotating from one side of the crest, around the ring and to the other side. The ring seemed to pulse with magical energy. "Bloody Hell!" said Harry, but it wasn't for the ring. Even though he was very excited and shocked about the ring it was the next item that he was dying to try out.

**THE POTTER STAFF:**

_The most powerful of all the Potter items. This staff has been handed down from generation to generation. It has been wielded by some of the most powerful wizards, warlocks and even mages to date. Was created by the first potter, Henry Potter, more than a thousand years ago. As some of the more recent wielders have discovered, the magic done through this staff cannot be traced by the Ministry. There is only one rule for the wielder of this great staff: Use it well or don't use it at all._

The staff was silvery gray with an unusually bright, black stone on the top of it. It was one of the most amazing things Harry had seen in his life, and that was saying something with all the items he'd seen today.

"How am I going to carry all of this stuff out of here?" Harry asked himself.

As if in response to his question, Harry noticed a black duffel bag leaning on the side of the glass case. 'That's funny, I could have sworn that wasn't there before. oh well, it's here now and thank Merlin for that.' With that last thought Harry started putting all the items into the bag and noticed that it was enlarged to carry much more inside the bag than it seemed on the outside.

Putting everything except the ring in the bag he gathered up some gold for his shopping spree and slid the ring onto his right-hand ring finger. Harry instantly felt a pulse of energy go through him that made him feel like he could run a marathon.

'If I'm gonna feel like this all the time I'll never take this ring off ever again...not that I would anyway.'

Heading back to the podium with a money pouch full with at lease 5,000 galleons and his duffel bag full of the battle gear, Harry felt that things were actually going right for once and that training would be a lot easier with his new gear.

Remember to review. You obviously read : )


	3. More Preparations and A New Look

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Harry Potter. Who do you think I am? J.K. Rowling? Well, your wrong, so stop bothering me about it and get on with reading this (my) _Fanfic_.

A/N: Hope you like the new chapter, not too much excitement yet but I'm getting there. Anyway, here's the rest of the Diagon Alley trip.

**MORE PREPARATIONS AND A NEW LOOK**

**BY:CHICANOSURFER01**

Having appeared back on the platform, Harry jumped into the car and asked Graphrock for the time.

"The current time is 12:37 A.M., Is there any other business you need to attend to or need assistance with?"

"Well I was wondering if I could exchange some of my galleons for muggle pounds. What's the exchange rate?"

"One galleon is equivalent to twelve muggle pounds, but we keep what is equal to 2 pounds for service charge. How much would you like to exchange?" asked Graphrock as they arrived back in the main lobby.

"Um . . . I think that 250 galleons are enough, that would be 2,500 pounds right?"

"Yes sir, I will get that for you right away." Graphrock took Harry's 250 galleons and came back quickly with 250 ten-pound notes.

"Is there anything else Mr. Potter?"

"No Graphrock, thanks for your help." On that note Harry stepped out of Gringotts and back into Diagon Alley.

'I definitely need to go to Flourish and Blotts first, I need some books to study or my new gear will be of no use.'

Once inside the bookstore Harry headed for the DADA section almost immediately. He picked up the three books he thought would help him the most, which included, _Perfect Dueling Spells and Techniques, The Offensive and Defensive sides of DADA, _and_ Helpful Shields and Spells for the Best Defense._

Going into the Transfiguration section, Harry found two books that interested him the most, _Conjuring _and _Animating _and _Advanced Transfiguration: A True Art_. Picking up _Taming the inner beast_, an Animagus training book, he headed for the charms section. Here he found a book in a sort of weird glass case in the middle of the isle. Looking into the case, he actually noticed it was a collection of spell books and had a casing that read _The Ultimate Collection of Charms, Hexes, Jinxes, Curses and _Spells: 150 Galleons.

"This could definitely help me out" said Harry, picking up the collection.

Having finished with finding the books for his magical training, Harry turned into the miscellaneous section where he found a book on household charms and a couple books on muggle defenses; such as sword fighting and a book on various types of martial arts.

'I think that's enough for now, but I wonder how much this is all going to cost?' Walking up to the counter with a stack of books, he waited to be acknowledged by an old man apparently reading a newspaper.

Putting the newspaper down, the old man uncommittedly started checking the books for their prices. "Wow. That'll be 197 galleons and three sickles sir. Can you really afford this collection?"

Harry, making sure to keep his scar covered, only answered by pulling out 198 galleons and stuffing the books in his duffel bag.

Leaving the shop, Harry decided to go into muggle London.

'I'm tired of wearing Dudley's old clothes. I think it's time for a new wardrobe.' Harry waved down a taxi and jumped into it when one stopped.

"Could you take me to the best clothing store around here? I might need some help though; so maybe somewhere a little smaller, not a department store."

"Yes sir, I know the perfect place."

Arriving in front of a small to a mid-size store with a sign on the front saying 'fine clothing and casual wear', Harry slid out of the car giving the cab driver a nice tip.

As soon as he entered a beautiful blonde girl approached him, "How may I help you? Are you looking for casual or fine wear today?"

"Um . . . well, I was actually planning on getting a whole new wardrobe. As you can see, I don't really have any nice clothes with me and I'm not the most fashionable, so I was hoping you would help me pick something out." Harry explained, while tugging on his baggy jeans. The girl smiled, obviously excited about the prospect of the shopping spree.

"Well come with me and we'll find something for you." The girl immediately started pulling jeans, T-shirts, polos, and some different colored pants off the racks.

"I'm Amanda, by the way. Go try these on for now and I'll come back in a minute with some dress clothes for you, all right?"

"I'm Harry and thanks."

Going into the dressing room Harry pulled on a black collared shirt with some jeans and was called out by Amanda to see how it looked.

"Wow, you're actually cute under those tents you were wearing for clothes. Keep trying everything on. Here are some button-up shirts and dress pants. I'll be waiting out here to help you judge the look." Blushing Harry went back into the dressing room and changed.

This routine kept on going, Amanda calling some clothes keepers and some not. They folded the clothes that they decided to keep, including 16 polo shirts, 10 T-shirts, and 5 Button-up dress shirts of varying colors. He ended up with six pairs of jeans, two pairs of khakis, four pairs of dress pants and he made sure to get a new tracksuit and a pair of trainers for running.

"Your total is 980 pounds. You know, you might want to get a haircut next door to get your new look complete. That mop on your head isn't helping your new look Harry."

"Thanks Amanda, I really appreciate your help and I might do that."

To tell the truth Harry couldn't remember the last time he got his hair cut except for the time his Aunt Petunia had nearly shaved him bald. His confusion must have shown because Amanda followed with, "Just let Jenny, next door, take care of you; she won't do you wrong."

Harry said thanks again as he stuffed his bags in the duffel bag and went out the door.

'Am I really gonna do this? What the hell, hopefully they'll be able to do something with what I call hair.'

Entering the door he noticed a redhead watching a television.

"Jenny?" he called.

"Who asks?" The redhead asked without turning from the T.V.

"Hi, I'm Harry. Amanda from next door told me you could help me with my hair?"

"She did, did she? Ok then, I guess I can help you out. Oh, and yes I'm Jenny." She said, finally turning around. Harry was a little unnerved by her smile and found out soon enough, why it was that she was smiling.

"So let me guess, Amanda saw you shopping, or helped you out, and suggested you come in here? I swear, the girl sees possibilities in any decent looking guy, but you do need some help with your hair. What were you thinking with that hairdo?"

"I've been living with my relatives all my life and never got a decent haircut."

"Well, I'll fix that. Why don't you sit down so I can get started." It wasn't a question. More like an order, but Harry of course obliged and sat down.

As soon as he sat down, Jenny got to work.

Harry didn't know what to think when he saw all the hair that was falling from his head. Instead of showing any nervousness, Harry just closed his eyes and relaxed. 'It can't be worse than what I had before right?' Harry thought as Jenny said she was finished.

"Some of my best work yet. Kinda helps that Amanda was right about you. Hey! Stop acting scared and look for yourself."

Harry opened his eyes to see an almost totally new person. His hair was a lot shorter and exposed his scar. It was done so it looked like the messiness of his hair was done on purpose.

"It's short enough for you to maybe spike it up if you want; but this messiness gives you an 'I don't care' look but it's not scruffy like your old do."

"Wow, thanks Jenny, it looks great. How much do I owe you?"

"Ten pounds, and don't forget the tip." she said with a smile. Harry dropped twenty pounds on the counter and left a very happy girl behind when he left.

After waving down another taxi, Harry headed back for the Leaky Cauldron, it was only 3:30 and he wanted to get done with his shopping. He knew he should have done it while he was already in Diagon Alley; he had been holding it of all day.

Last time he had gone down Knockturn Alley it hadn't been a very happy experience and he wasn't looking forward to another trip. Harry snuck into an alleyway to put on his invisibility cloak and stood beside the door of the Leaky Cauldron, waiting for someone to open the door.

He didn't have to wait long as a young couple opened the door and Harry was in luck as they went straight through and into Diagon Alley, which gave him the opportunity to follow. Once he was in Diagon Alley he turned the corner to head into Knockturn Alley.

Once in, he went straight for Borgin & Burkes. Entering the store, Harry was immediately asked who he was by the man at the counter.

"_DO NOT WORRY ABOUT WHO I AM. ONLY BE BOTHERED BY WHAT I WANT."_ Harry filled his voice with power and a little bit of a hiss.

"What is it that you want?" asked the teller.

"_I WANT A BOOK ON DARK CURSES EXPLAINING HOW YOU CREATE THEM AND ALSO HOW YOU BLOCK THEM."_

"Ye..yes s..sir, right away." The teller stuttered. "That'll be twenty-seven galleons, three sickles and two knuts." Harry placed thirty galleons on the counter and took the pair of books the teller had brought out.

Not wanting to be there any longer then necessary, Harry left without waiting for his change and headed back towards The Leaky Cauldron.

Once inside Harry headed straight for the door and didn't wait for somebody to open it for him. He went into the same dark alleyway as before and took off his invisibility cloak. Seeing as it was 4:20, Harry headed back to the corner where his uncle dropped him off at and noticed his uncle already there, reading his newspaper.

"Finally boy! Get in, I've been waiting forever." Vernon berated Harry.

Getting into the car Harry knew his uncle couldn't have been there more than a minute but decided not to comment on it.

"Nice to see you got that mop cleaned up. Not that it helps you out in the looks department." Vernon tried complimenting but ended up failing. Fifteen years of treating Harry like crap wasn't going to change over night.

"Um.. thanks. I think."

Arriving at Number four Privet Drive, Harry went straight up to his room to admire his new belongings. He knew that he could now train efficiently in everything he had planned. He had books to study, weapons to train with, and even a way to do magic without being expelled.

'Voldemort and I will face each other one day. He might be coming for me right now and when he does, I'll be ready. I'm not going to be a scared little boy anymore. I'm going to fight...I'm going to fight and I'm going to win...'

A/N: Thanks to Hermes09, Carrie, Lady of the Dragons2, Dishantpandya, and Potter Reader for reviewing. Keep reading, Harry will be training next chapter and maybe the answer to the dream Harry had last chapter.

Hermes09: The Elements? The Test? You'll see, they might come up in a chapter or two...if you're lucky. Thanks for the review.

Lady of the Dragons2: Don't worry. I don't think I'm gonna make him super-invincible-man as you put it. I am going to give him some new powers and put him through hell in some of his training...and other things too. Thanks for the review.

You obviously Read so why don't you review? Come on, you know you want to do it. Just push the little button :)


	4. The Exhaustion of Training

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Harry Potter so stop bothering me about it.

A/N: I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I was ISD (In School Detention) all day and had nothing to do after writing my sentences so started on this. Look for little hidden sentences on things to come, I'm sure I at least put a couple hints in here. I have part of the next chapter done so it should be up either tomorrow or the next day, depending on length. Remember to Read and Review. Without further delay, the next chapter . . .

**THE EXHAUSTION OF TRAINING**

**BY: CHICANOSURFER01**

"_...FIRE, WATER, WIND, EARTH . . . A TEST . . . THE POWER YOU KNOW NOT WILL COME TO YOU . . . FIRST YOU MUST PROVE YOUR WORTHINESS . . . YOU MUST FACE YOUR DESTINY . . . "_

Harry Potter sat straight up for the second time in so many nights.

'That's the second time I have this dream. This can't be normal.' Getting up, harry put on his tracksuit, as today was his first day of full training.

He crept quietly out of his room and out the front door. He ran to the park and, like last time, started his stretches on the hill. He had decided last night to push himself to the limit. He knew that the only way to improve himself as much as he wanted to, was by stretching his physical and magical boundaries. This was exactly what he planned to do today. He ran around the park four times, (about four and a half miles) until he almost collapsed from his burning legs.

"I have to push myself. I have to be ready." With a renewed determination, Harry got up from his quick rest and did a full-on sprint back to Number four where he proceeded to do his sit-ups, push-ups, and his other cool down exercises.

Going inside for a quick shower Harry could already feel the ring refilling him with energy.

He ate a quick breakfast and decided to get on with his DADA study. He read the books he had bought in Diagon Alley for an hour, before he finally decided to try out his new staff.

'I really hope this can't be detected by the ministry. I want to go back to Hogwarts.' Harry thought, looking down at the staff in the duffel bag.

Almost immediately after picking up the staff, Harry felt a weird sensation go up his arm. 'It feels like being reunited with an old friend.' thought Harry.

Standing up with the staff at an angle, Harry noticed it felt unusually light to his touch. 'I wonder if it'll work for me as well as my wand does. Well... only one way to find out.'

He pointed the beautiful staff at his bed, deciding to use _Wingardium Leviosa _on it, to see how well the staff worked.

The only thing was that, before he got the chance to say the incantation, the staff's black jewel slightly lit and the bed was hovering about a foot off the ground.

"I didn't even say the incantation! Why did it work? ....maybe... " Getting an idea, Harry thought of wanting the bed to go back to the ground and, as before, the jewel lit up while the bed complied.

Barely holding in his excitement, Harry picked up the household charms book and looked up some charms to make his room a better training area. After placing various charms, including enlargement and silencing charms, around his room he decided to get to work.

He found that he did have to say the incantation with more advanced spells, but he wasn't worried about it. Creating a training dummy with a spell he found in the DADA book (_Dumius Transio)_, he started flinging curse after curse at it. Supposedly the dummy would light up either green, yellow or red when you hit it with a spell. If you did the incantation right, the dummy would light up green; wrong, and it would light up red; yellow if you did it partially right. Harry slowly progressed on getting the spells right, but was thankful that the ring was keeping him from magical exhaustion.

He went from DADA to Transfiguration where he used the same technique of reading for an hour and practicing for an hour. He had already learned the basics of animating and was currently trying to conjure up a new bed for himself so that he could sleep comfortably. He still had to concentrate very hard and it took him a whole five minutes of determined concentration to create the bed. The book said that it would get easier with practice, and soon, he would be only have to think of an item while saying the incantation.

After getting rid of his old bed, Harry placed the bed he had conjured, (a four-poster almost identical to the one he had in Gryffindor Tower) in it's place.

Satisfied with his transfiguration practice for the day, Harry decided to go downstairs for lunch.

"Training this much sure makes you hungry. I feel like I could eat a whole hippogriff right now." Harry said to himself while pulling out three helpings of food out of the refrigerator.

Sitting down with a plate of shepherds' pie, meatloaf, and grilled chicken each, Harry started to wonder where the Dursleys were, as he hadn't seen them all day.

Stepping into the living room to look around a bit, having finished his huge lunch, he noticed a short note on the coffee table.

'Left for vacation to Jamaica, Won't be back until August 27. DON'T MESS UP THE HOUSE and NO FREAKS! V. Dursley.'

"Sounds just like him. Has the guts to call us freaks but only in a note, the Sodding Git."

Deciding to use his time wisely, Harry went into the garage to start his weight training early. 'Dudley's not here so I can use his weights without worrying I'll getting caught.' He wasn't worried about getting big, just stronger; but working out was the only way to improve his muscle strength.

Finishing up, he headed upstairs for more training. 'I'm already sweaty so I might as well do my sword training now.'

Reading a little more on how to animate his dummy for sword combat, Harry found a little spell that would help him train in levels to learn quickly. Harry decided to start out just higher than beginner level. For some weird reason he felt that he could handle it. Getting out his two swords and conjuring up two swords for his dummy; Harry spoke the activation word.

Almost immediately after the word _'activo'_ was spoken, the dummy attacked, surprising Harry because of the low setting. Miraculously, Harry managed to block the dummy's attack and come back with his own.

If anyone looked at him, no one would guess this was the first time handling the swords. He did have his flaws but Harry seemed naturally graceful and deadly with both swords. _Cling_ after _Cling_ resounded around the enlarged bedroom as Harry and the dummy parried each others blows. After blocking a hit from both above and below harry did an amazing spin move that made the swords slice through the dummy in two places.

"Game over." Harry said, breathing heavily over the three remaining pieces of the dummy. A _'Reparo'_ later, the dummy was back to normal and in a deactivated state for later use.

After a quick shower, Harry reentered his room for the Charms section of his training. Again, using an hour for reading the spell book collection, Harry found a lot of spells that looked like they could be extremely useful in a battle or duel. Excited about the prospect of new spells, he started flinging spells at the dummy that varied from body-part detachment curses to strengthening charms.

One hour later, Harry pulled out _"Taming the Inner Beast"_ and, anxious to start his animagus training, Harry started to read:

"_Animagi are part of a strange and powerful branch of magic full of endless possibilities. Much the same as people, every animagus is unique to his or her personal traits and amount of power. Very rarely, there are certain witches or wizards that achieve more than one animagus in their lifetime and even fewer have been known to posses the ability to change into a magical creature. In order to find out what your specific animagus is, you must enter yourself into a trance-like-  
state through meditation. Clear your mind of all thought and look **into** your mind to find your inner beast. You might find yourself in a heavy fog but you must not give up the search. **Feel** your way through the fog and to your animagus form."_

Harry stopped here to try the meditation. He made himself comfortable in a cross-legged position on his new bed.

Remembering his Occlumency lessons, Harry started to clear his mind. He closed his eyes and set himself free in his mind; he wasn't really sure how he accomplished this but blamed it on instinct. He found himself in a very dark, almost pitch-black place, when memories from his life started appearing on little television-like screens everywhere. He was about to start watching a few when he remembered what he was trying to do here and got back on track. Not knowing exactly what to do or where to go, he just started walking. Eventually, his memories started to fade away as he (or at least he figured that he did) entered a different section of his mind.

The 'room' started spinning around him, and when the spinning finally stopped, he found himself in a dense fog, just as the book had explained it. Again, not knowing where to go or what to do, Harry just kept walking. He could feel the presence of something, but couldn't pinpoint the exact location with his gut instincts.

'Where in Merlin's name am I supposed to go? How can I find anything at all when it's too foggy to even see what you're goin- . . . ' Harry's train of thought abruptly stopped when he felt something soft brush against his side as it ran by. He could swear he heard the flapping of at least one pair of wings, but wasn't sure. Then he saw it.

An overly large wolf with silver eyes and a pure black coat was looking straight at him. For some weird reason Harry couldn't understand, he wasn't afraid. He started walking toward the wolf but stopped in his tracks when it reversed its colorings to a silverish coat with bottomless black eyes.

'How the hell did it do that? What is this thing?' Thought Harry.

The wolf started walking toward Harry this time. When it was close enough to touch, Harry reached down to pet its head. The only problem was that, when he made contact with the animal, he woke out of his trance in excruciating pain. His bones felt as though they were trying to twist and turn; which they actually were, as they tried to change his features. Finally after about a minute, he totally transformed.

He felt the need to hunt, to be free, all the animal's instincts at once. He almost totally lost himself in the animal but managed to keep his sanity and remember who he was. Due to this, and him not knowing how to keep the form, he started changing back, which of course came with the company of more pain.

Moments later Harry reappeared in a heap on the floor. With more effort then he ever thought he would use doing so, he climbed up onto his new four-poster bed.

'I'm not sure whether to be happy or not about turning so soon. All I know is that it sure hurts like hell.'

What Harry didn't know was that, as much pain and exhaustion he had faced in his waking hours, it was only minimal to what was waiting for him in his sleep.

A/N: I think that might be my first cliffy. Thanks to Lady of the Dragons2, Gohan00, Lady of Masbolle, and Fine(?), for reviewing. I hope this chapter was satisfactory for you and I lived up to your expectations. Keep reviewing. I look forward to reading my reviews.

You see that button? You know what to do : ).


	5. The Quest for the Elements: Part One

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER. Good enough for you J.K.? Like she would be reading this huh? ; )

A/N: Just keep in mind that this chapter is in a sort of dream world. It's not the real world for Harry, although he is going to have all the scars and whatnot when he wakes up. You'll see. Look for little hints on the ship or things to come. Guess what the hints are and I'll tell you if your right or wrong. Remember to review after you read. Until next time . . .

**QUEST FOR THE ELEMENTS: PART ONE**

**BY:CHICANOSURFER01**

"_... FIRE, WATER, WIND, EARTH . . . A TEST . . . THE POWER YOU KNOW NOT WILL COME TO YOU . . . BUT FIRST YOU MUST PROVE YOUR WORTHINESS . . . YOU MUST FACE YOUR DESTINY . . . "_

Unlike the other two nights, Harry didn't wake up this time. Instead he screamed back at the strange voices that were telling him this weird piece of information. Harry wanted some answers.

"What in Merlin's name is that supposed to mean? Show yourself! I'll take this so-called test of yours!"

"... So be it . . . " the voices said together.

Appearing, seemingly out of nowhere, four 'people', if you could call them that, stared down at Harry. Each seemed to represent one of the elements they were talking about. There were what looked like two men and two women, each looking as if they were made of a certain element. The women being wind and water, while the men represented fire and earth.

"Um . . . who are you people?"

"We are the elemental powers of the universe."

"Well, what do you want with me? What is this so-called test? And what's this power you speak of?"

"You have been chosen. You must face a different task from each of us and reach our jewels that hold the power of our elements." The strange figures said this while each holding out a different type of jewel with a specific rune. "If and when you complete the four tasks, you will have the abilities of our elements and what they create."

"Well, lets get on with it. I want to go back to sleeping peacefully."

"We will give you your battle gear, but don't count on sailing your way through these tasks just because you have them. The only part of your battle gear that you don't get is your staff and wand. Magic will not be used on these tasks. Only a quick mind and body can help you on this quest."

Moments after the elements told Harry this, the world around him changed into a deep green valley full of plants and trees.

"You will find the jewel of fire surrounded by its element. You must find the mountain of heat." Harry heard a strange voice, one of the elements, tell him this but he couldn't pinpoint where it came.

"What's a mountain of heat? Well, it has to be around here somewhere, and I'll find it."

Before setting out on foot, Harry looked down at himself and admired his appearance. He was wearing all of his battle gear in a sort of warrior or ninja knight style. His two swords formed an X on his back, with the handles coming out of the sheaths right above his shoulders for easy access. He could feel the light Dragon-hide armor under his amazing battle robes for some needed protection. There was only one thing different, besides not having his staff, about the whole setup. While he was wearing his two wand holsters, he had no wands. In place of the wands, he had a dagger in each holster that popped out and into his hand with a flick of his wrist. The daggers had not come from his family vault. Harry, after examining them, guessed where they had come from. On the grips were four small symbols in the color of each element on the handles. The symbols, Harry noticed, were the same as the runes that he had seen inside each of the elemental jewel.

"I guess these are a gift. I wonder why they gave them to me? That was nice of them." Finalizing the situation, Harry just shook it off and started walking.

After what seemed like half an hour of walking through endless green, Harry started to notice what looked like ash falling from the sky.

"How is this happening? Unless there's a volcano around here somewhere then - that's it! A 'mountain of heat' must mean a volcano! I figured it out! Oh shit! Ash mean eruption and eruption means lava, which I don't really want to mix with."

Looking around and thinking quickly; Harry cut down some trees small enough so his hands could fit around the trunk and gathered up some vines for his new project. Looking around, he had the fortune of finding some unusual trees with leaves as big as his whole body. Thinking about how unusual it was that he found everything he needed pretty quickly (about a half hour) he proceeded to get to work.

Having remembered the design from a model he had built while in muggle school; Harry began to build the frame to a man-sized glider.

'I hope this works. This is the only thing I can think of, to get over the lava and onto a part of the volcano's lava free spots.'

He shaped the small trees to make them slick and easier to tie together into a decent frame. He carved two grips on the branch he was going to hold onto while gliding and proceed to tie a vine for his feet's resting place. After all, he didn't want his feet to slip off and go into the smoldering lava.

Having the frame pretty much done and sturdy, Harry collected four of the big leaves and cut them so that, once tied together, would fit perfectly on the top frame of the glider. Putting holes around the sides of the leaves with his daggers, he proceeded to tie them onto the frame.

"It may not win an award for design or looks, but I'm pretty sure it'll work and that's all I need."

Looking proudly at his handiwork, Harry decided to take the glider on a trial run before he went anywhere remotely close to the lava.

Climbing up the side of the valley, Harry came to a clearing that showed the volcano on one side of him and endless green on the other. Starting to run towards the green of the valley, he waited to gain speed before he felt a slight lift and jumped into the air. Sliding his feet into the vines he was using to hold them up, Harry was amazed at how well his glider was working.

He flew, just for fun, for about five minutes before he started to lose altitude and headed back to the clearing. Coming down in a spiral for a softer landing, Harry couldn't help the scream of triumph that escaped him when his feet touched the ground.

"Yes! It works! Only thing is having to land in as small of a spot as that rock jutting out of the ground."

Harry nervously started running. He jumped into the air again but this time towards the volcano.

As he started getting closer, Harry could already feel the heat on his face. Thankfully, his armor protected his body from most of the heat. Starting to spiral down was five minutes of pure concentration for Harry.

"Come on, come on. Just ten more feet to the rock.... I can do it... and.... NOW!" With that shout, Harry let go of the glider and landed on the rock.

He stood there a second, watching the glider burst into flames when it touched the lava.

"Just to think, that could've been me with it." Shaking off the thought, Harry proceeded to jump from rock to rock, the biggest one being the one he landed on. He wasn't exactly sure where he was going, but for some reason, (maybe his instincts) he was drawn to the left side of the volcano.

Getting closer, he noticed that the majority of this side was untouched. Harry thanked Merlin a thousand times over for his new battle boots when a bead of sweat fell off of his forehead and he immediately heard the sizzle when it contacted the rock.

Finally, Harry got to the volcanoes base on the left side. For some reason, the lava was avoiding this side and he wanted to know why. He started to explore the small, lava free area until he found something very interesting.

One of the rocks, that he had thought was just like the others, was blocking a cave entrance from his view.

"The jewel has to be in there. Why else would this be here?" Harry decided to go into the cave, not exactly sure of what to expect and not sure if he wanted to know.

Heat.

That's the first thing Harry started to feel. He knew he was inside of a volcano, but did it have to be this hot?

Walking into a big room, Harry could see a platform totally surrounded by lava, except for one little rock path. This was all irrelevant when he saw what was on the opposite side of the platform.

Spinning in the air, surrounded by flames, was the elemental jewel. Crossing the rock path at a run, Harry didn't notice it sinking into the lava after him. He stopped once he actually got on the platform with the feeling of being watched.

Turning around, Harry was being stared down by two men, much like the elemental man that visited him, seemingly made of fire.

Both of men each took out a sword that was, amazingly enough, engulfed in flames.

Pulling out his two swords, Harry got into a stance and nodded the men over, eager for a good fight.

"You wanna go to war? I'll take you to war." Running toward the two men, Harry seemed possessed. He swung a sword at each of his opponents but they were immediately blocked. It was Harry's turn to block attacks as the strange men attacked as a team.

The two men continued to work together and, because of this successful strategy, Harry was unable to follow with his own attacks.

Swords were coming at Harry so quickly that he had to rely on his instincts to block all the attacks. Thinking quickly and knowing he would eventually lose against the duo because of their great teamwork; He did something about it.

He dropped down to the ground after another block. Not expecting this move, only one of the two men was able to move out of the way quick enough before being tripped by Harry's spinning kick that was immediately followed with his dagger going in between the man's 'eyes.'

Greatly relieved that his combatants number was reduced to one, Harry turned to the other man with a renewed vigor. As the downed man vanished in front of Harry's eyes, the extra sword was picked up by the man's partner.

"Round two then? Bring it on you damn flamer!"

This time it was Harry who had to block the first attack. There was a visible difference in the battle now that it was a one-on-one situation. The attacks were shared but so were the blocks.

The 'Flamer' as Harry had taken to calling it, (for lack of a better name and the double meaning) launched a series of attacks that caused Harry to back up. Ending the volley with a throw to the face, the man almost took Harry's head off.

Infuriated by the slash on his cheek, caused by the tip of his opponent's sword, Harry screamed what sounded like a war cry. He charged for his opponent with a barrage of attacks that ended with the other man on the ground and his sword at his throat.

"Round two, Over. Harry two, 'Flamers' zero." Harry announced his win as he drove his sword through the Flamer's neck.

Watching as the man slowly disappeared, Harry turned and faced the jewel.

Picking up the dagger he had thrown at the first man, he instinctively sliced at the fire around the elemental jewel. The flames instantly dispersed into nothing, leaving the jewel floating in the air.

Grabbing the jewel from the air, Harry immediately felt a burning on the left side of his back, by his shoulder. Looking at it, under his clothing, he noticed the rune that was in the small jewel was tattooed there.

"Why did that happen? Does this have to do with the fire element?"

"Congratulations on your achievement warrior. With that marking and that jewel, you have just received the element of fire." Disregarding the warrior part, Harry immediately asked for his next task.

"Patience young one. Your next task will be found in Waterfall City. You will be explained the next chapter of your quest there."

With those final words Harry disappeared from the heat of the volcano.

(A/N: I was gonna stop it here, but thanks to your reviewing, I'm going to go on with the next part of Harry's elemental journey.)

Reappearing moments later, Harry found himself in shin-high water. All Harry could see were waterfalls everywhere with the occasional island of sand and trees. In a way, this reminded Harry of a post card with paradise written in the corner. For that's exactly what it was. The sun was shining, the breeze was blowing and the water was warm.

"You must overcome the physical as well as mental challenges that this task will cause you. The jewel is located _in_ the largest and purest waterfall in Waterfall City, that same waterfall just happens to be the provider of all of the smaller waterfalls. Get there to complete your task." Harry again could not pinpoint the voice, but was happy that this task seemed easy enough. All he had to do was find the waterfall and he should be okay.

He guessed that since all the other waterfalls were created by the water from the one he was looking for, then it would also be the highest. Looking up at the mountain of waterfalls, he could distinctly see where the waterfalls began and where the mountain's highest point was.

"I guess I better start hiking up the mountain. There's never a better time to start than the present."

Just as he started to walk up an angled side of the mountain, Harry heard the scream of what seemed like a terrified woman. Running toward where he heard the scream, he ended up on one of the larger islands on the edge of its small forest. Hearing the scream again, he sprinted into the middle of the forest where he found a small clearing.

Here he found a woman trying to escape from the grasps of two men. Once Harry noticed that they were trying to take advantage of her, Harry screamed at them to leave the woman alone.

"WHY DON'T YOU GUY'S PICK ON SOMEONE YOUR OWN SIZE AND LEAVE THAT WOMAN ALONE!?" The men immediately let her go and turned to face Harry.

"What are you gonna do about it? Kick **_my_** ass? Go away, _hero_, no one wants to play your games here. Leave us alone. We're busy."

"I'm not leaving. Not until I see to it that this lady here is safe and won't be bothered by you ever again."

"That's it. You've gotten on my nerves and that means pain for you Buddy."

"Bring it on!" was Harry's only response.

Getting off the ground, the man finally let Harry get a good look at him. The man was about 7 feet, four inches with hands made of metal and the body of a body builder.

Harry wasn't sure what to do, but looking around at his surroundings, he formed a simple but hopefully effective plan. Mistaking the look of surprise on Harry's face for Fear, the man smirked.

"Scared of little ol' Balrog now are we? Don't worry about it. I've killed tougher men than you."

Harry put on a smirk of his own and, as part of his plan he only pulled out one sword. Stopping about five feet from Harry, Balrog asked, "What are you gonna do with that toothpick? Poke me? HA HA HA, right. Let's get this over with."

When Balrog started to run toward Harry, he turned and ran also. Balrog, following because he thought Harry was running away scared, was surprised when Harry ran up a slightly angled tree and flew ten feet into the air. While on Harry's way back down, he had his sword out as if to aim at Balrog's head, and then he executed his plan.

As soon as Balrog blocked the sword's attack with his metal arms, Harry flicked his open wrist for his dagger and stabbed his opponent in the chest, aiming for his heart. As soon as that was over, Balrog's accomplice let go of the woman and ran away. Harry didn't what to allow this coward to flee since he might come back for the women; so he threw his sword, as if it were a lance, straight into the man's back.

After Collecting his sword and dagger, Harry went up to the woman to check if she was alright. On his way over to her, Harry noticed for the first time since he'd seen her, how beautiful she was.

She had a mane of dark black hair, bright brown eyes, and a very sexy tan. She had curves any woman would kill for and was very...Well... let's just say developed. Before Harry had a chance to say anything, the still crying woman launched herself at him and kept on thanking him over and over.

"Shhh, it's OK now,"Harry soothed her, "they're gone and wont bother you anymore."

Once Harry noticed she stopped crying, he held her at arms length and introduced himself.

"I'm Harry, what's your name?"

"My name is Tina. Thank you so much for saving me. I don't even want to imagine what they would have done if you hadn't come."

"Well, it's all over now. They won't be bothering you or anyone else ever again. Do you want me to take you home? Where do you live?"

"I live on the other side of the island with my family. Do you think you could come with me? I still don't feel very safe."

"Yeah, sure. I'll take you wherever you want to go."

While walking, Harry found out, thru small talk, that Tina lived with her parents and five brothers. One of her brothers had died last year so now there were only six of the original seven kids, in which she was the youngest.

Continuing to walk, with Tina still clinging to him, Harry started to lose sight of his task. Actually, if you asked him, the only response you would get was "What task?" which was a very major problem. In fact, arriving at Tina's house, She asked him, "Would you like to eat dinner with my family and I? You don't have anything to do, do you?"

Harry, looking confused for a second, answered with, "Actually, I don't think I have any plans. I just noticed that I'm pretty hungry and that dinner sounds great."

A/N: How bout that cliffy! Big thanks to Lady of Masbolle, voxenking, shdurrani, n6uos, Tuxedomac, Sierra Potter-Malfoy, OrionTheHunter, Lady of the Dragons2, and Oneeyejane for reviewing. Make sure to keep up the good work on reviewing guys. I'm making each chapter longer as a thanks. RnR

Lady of Masbolle: Sorry about the spelling mistakes, but I do type these after work, starting at 11 PM at the earliest. For some reason my spell check isn't working on every mistake. Don't know why, but I might just get a beta or something.

Dr Gero: I'm pretty sure there are other stories that involve harry getting a staff, but I couldn't name any off the top of my head. Yes, I do plan on training him to use the staff as a weapon. Maybe not until later and maybe with someone to teach him, but I'm not sure yet. You'll see how I disguise the staff in a couple of chapters. Oh, and have you ever Beta read before? I think that I might need a Beta pretty soon. As you can tell, I do have spelling mistakes and need someone to help me out. Tell me about it in your next review.

Lady of the Dragons2: Harry just started his summer remember. It's currently only the fourth day of summer and the Dursleys just left. I had actually meant to put in that the food was actually left overs but when he does run out of food he has left over pounds from his shopping spree to spend. He should start his correspondence with his friends in two or three chapters, depending on how far I am into the summer. Thanks for the compliments, action is what I like to write best so I like putting harry through hell and back.

For those of you that have been asking...Don't get freaked out by the end part of this chapter, it's in a sort of dream world. Yes I will be making this Harry/Ginny, it's actually my favorite ship. I just wanted to keep my options open if I decided to do something else. Just to tell you guys, I've been leaving little hints of what's to come hidden into my writing. At least one during harry's animagus training and at least one in this chapter.

You see that button right there? Push it, push it , oh come on, PLEASE :)


	6. The Quest for the Elements: Part Two

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. JKR owns everything in this fanfic except for my plot and original ideas.

A/N: I'm sorry about the delay in this chapter. My computer was totally broken and I had to get it fixed, along with getting the internet working again. : ( More money down the drain, I'm not even totally sure what was wrong with it; but it's fixed now so I should be back to writing normally. I'm not sure how long it will take me to write the next chapter but it should be up by the end of this week. Again I'm sorry but I couldn't help it. Hope you enjoy!

P.S.: All previous chapters have been beta read by my new beta: Dr. Gero!

**THE QUEST FOR THE ELEMENTS: PART TWO**

**BY: CHICANOSURFER01**

Feeling very content with Tina pressed against him, Harry walked up the steps to the front of Tina's home. Before getting to the door, Tina's brothers filed out onto the porch. All five of them didn't look too happy with the idea of their baby sister clinging to an unknown man.

Tina let go of Harry and started talking to her brothers in a different language. Harry wasn't exactly sure what she was saying to them but got the gist of it when her brothers stopped glaring at him. Looking at them, Harry knew he didn't want to be on their bad side.

They consisted of two men who looked in their mid-twenties, a set of twins around the age of seventeen or eighteen and the youngest, besides Tina, looked around Harry's age. They were all well built and looked like they could defend themselves efficiently, with or without weapons.

'She must have been telling them what happened earlier. I was kinda worried I would have to fight them off when they came out glaring.'

Tina's brothers started thanking Harry profusely when they found out that he had saved their little sister. Harry just brushed off all of the praising with, "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time."

Going inside they met Tina's parents on the way to the dining room, where Tina's mom gave him a fierce but motherly hug; Harry felt unusually comfortable. He felt as though he had been here before but was also sure that he had never been anywhere close to here.

Serving dinner, Tina's mother, who asked to be called Lucy, gave Harry an extremely big portion of Steak and mashed potatoes.

"Thank you Lucy. This looks delicious."

"You're welcome Harry. If you want more just ask; you look like you could use a little fattening up." Harry just smiled in return and began to eat.

"What are you doing around these parts Harry? You on vacation or something?" Asked Andy, Tina's father.

About to answer, Harry realized he could not remember why he was here.

He knew he had something very important to do, but he couldn't remember what that was. He answered with a yes to the vacation part. Harry could not help the little nagging voice telling him to stop wasting time.

"So where are you from Harry? I don't think I've seen you around these parts before, am I right?" asked Gregory, one of Tina's twin brothers.

"I'm from a little town near London named Little Whinging."

"London? Where's that?" asked Frank, the other twin.

Disregarding the weirdness of them not knowing where London was, Harry just answered simply with "London, England."

Still seeing bewildered looks on their faces, Harry decided to change the subject.

"So what do you guys do for fun around here? It's like a tropical paradise all around you."

"It is very pleasant around here. We usually go swimming in the waterfalls or train." Answered Chris, the second oldest of the children.

"Train? What type of training do you do?"

"We train ourselves in our native martial art, Kuwatzu. We use it as more of an art most of the time." This time it was the oldest, Bruno, who answered the question.

Ryan, the youngest of the brothers and who had been mostly quiet during dinner, finally got the courage to speak when they mentioned his favorite thing to do.

"Would you like to go outside after dinner and try it? We sometimes do sparring which is the best part."

"That would be great, I would love to learn some Kuwatzu. It seems very exciting."

"Oh it is!" answered Ryan, already getting up from the table and going outside.

Walking outside with Tina, Harry felt totally comfortable when she slipped her hand into his. Looking down at her, Harry felt as if she reminded him of someone. He kept having that feeling lately, but couldn't pinpoint where exactly the origin of these feelings came from.

Finally arriving on the edge of the island, they found themselves on a perfect beach for training. While Bruno and Chris faced each other, Ryan told Harry what was about to happen.

"Bruno and Chris will spar so that you can see what Kuwatzu is all about. You shouldn't have too hard of a time learning it. As long as you know how to throw basic punches and kicks you'll be ok. Kuwatzu is just adding little touches and turns to make the basic moves more efficient."

Harry noticed that their defensive stances were very odd. They stood with their bodies at an angle and their arms out, parallel with their bodies.

Once Ryan screamed go, they were off.

They moved with such swift and quick movements that Harry could see no flaw in their offense or defense. Bruno and Chris exchanged kicks and punches with extreme accuracy, but they always blocked the hits.

Finally, after about five minutes of exchanging blocked blows, Chris made a small mistake that cost him the match. Bruno had faked a punch at Chris's face and used his other arm (which Chris failed to notice) to throw an uppercut and send his brother flying.

After congratulating Bruno, everyone got to work in getting Harry up to speed. For hours Harry trained in tuning his fighting skills.

"You're a natural Harry. Your quick reflexes help you a lot in Kuwatzu. In fact, I don't think I've seen many that could match your speed." Said a very excited Gregory.

"Thanks Greg, I've always been on the quicker side. I've just never been very big."

"You look well built to me. You're nowhere near small Harry." Said an admiring Tina.

Trying to change the subject from his body, Harry suggested to Chris that they go swimming to clean all the sweat off of their bodies.

"Actually Harry, we have work to do back at the house. Tina, you've done your chores. Why don't you take Harry swimming?"

"All right, we shouldn't be too long."

Tina got off the ground and signaled for Harry to follow her. Leaving her brothers to work, Tina grabbed hold of Harry's hand and led him to the mountain of waterfalls.

"Have you seen the mountain yet? It's an amazing sight. I'll take you to my favorite spot in the all of Waterfall City."

"Yeah, I've seen it. It's bloody marvelous. Where's your favorite spot? Is it a far walk?"

"No, It is actually at the base of the mountain. It's just kind of hidden."

Arriving at the base of the mountain, Tina pulled Harry over to a small gathering of bushes. They walked right through them and found themselves right next to a hot spring.

"Wow. So no one knows about this place?"

"I don't think so. I've never seen anyone here before besides me. Its my own little private corner."

Harry automatically started taking off all of his gear. He didn't have any bathing trunks so he just decided to go in his boxers. In the middle of his undress, Harry stopped right in his tracks.

Tina pulled her sundress right over her head, revealing a very sexy two-piece bikini.

Noticing that a blushing Harry was staring at her, Tina threw him a brilliant smile and sunk into the spring.

Blushing even more, Harry finished undressing and slipped in the spring next to Tina.

"This is nice. It's the perfect temperature." Harry told Tina, who was sitting next to him now.

Tina just nodded and rested her head on his shoulder. Wrapping his arm around her, Harry looked down at Tina only to see her looking right back.

Not exactly sure what he was doing, Harry bent down and touched his lips to hers. Right after their lips met, Harry could feel Tina's tongue asking for entrance, which he immediately allowed. Harry explored Tina's mouth with his own tongue, but he felt something nagging at him. Harry felt that this moment was totally right and totally wrong at the same time. He had just met Tina earlier today and he knew that she was involuntarily distracting him from something.

Then it came to him. He finally remembered what he was supposed to be doing at the worst time. The little nagging voice that had been bothering him since before dinner finally broke through the barriers that his mind had put around the memory of his quest.

'What are you doing? You have a task to do. You're wasting time.'

Pulling away from Tina, Harry stood up right away.

"I'm sorry Tina but I have to go. I just remembered what I'm doing in this place and have to finish my journey. I just met you but I feel like I know you deeply. I'm not exactly sure why but I feel like I know you from somewhere. I have to figure out what is going on and once I do, I'll explain everything. Goodbye Tina."

Harry placed a final kiss on Tina's forehead and, redressing quickly, he was back to climbing up the steep mountain.

The Sun was setting; Harry berated himself for wasting so much time. 'Such an easy task, and I took this long to even start it.'

He started getting very annoyed with how much time his walk up the mountain was taking. There was a small path where you could go higher and higher up the mountain but it was very long. It wrapped around the mountain many times, causing you to go around the perimeter as many times as the path spiraled.

So, because of this, it was way past nightfall when Harry reached the top.

Looking around, Harry finally noticed the gleam of the jewel. It was hidden behind a sheet of water created by the waterfall, but Harry felt this was way too easy. Expecting someone or something to appear, Harry wasn't surprised when a woman, the same woman that represented the water element before his quest started, appeared out of the waterfall.

Pulling out his sword, Harry was sure he would have to fight her. In a soothing voice, the water-woman just laughed softly and said, "Put down your sword Harry. I'm not going to harm you. Your task is basically done with now. You faced up to your quest and showed your strength of mind when you left Tina and her family. I used memories from your mind and heart to face you with the most comforting people you could imagine. I even used features from your destined soul mate's personality and mind in Tina. I created her and her family to represent the best love you could receive. You won out in the end by leaving your greatest desire, family, and finishing your task."

"So it was all fake? None of it was real?" A very angry Harry asked the water-woman.

"In a way it was fake, yes. I created these people from your mind Harry. You know every one of them in some way, including your soul mate."

"Who _is _my soul mate?" Boys sure are dense aren't they? It's ok.. I'm one of them.

"It is not my place to tell you. You will find out in your own time. Once you share your first kiss, you will remember this place and what I have told you. Now take the jewel. You have done well."

"Thank you miss. Where do I go after that?"

"Grab the jewel. It will transport you to your next task. Wind is a very tricky lady. Good luck."

Walking up to the water, Harry put his hand through the waterfall and grabbed the jewel. Unlike last time, where Harry felt a burn, this time he felt a cool wetness on the right side of his back, opposite of the fire rune. Just as he suspected, Harry found the water rune on the right side of his back. He didn't have enough time to admire his new tattoo because, moments after looking under his clothing; he vanished from Waterfall City forever.

The first thing Harry noticed about his new surroundings when he appeared at his next destination, was that he was in the middle of nowhere.

He was in, as far as he could tell, a huge grassland that reached as far as the eye could see. It didn't help that it was nighttime and his visibility was already cut short.

'What element does this relate to? This looks like it would go with Earth more than it would Wind. Maybe the water-woman was mistaken in where I was going.'

Waiting for the voice of an element to give him a clue in what he had to do for his next task, Harry sat on the soft sand.

"Your next task is a simple one. You must survive. Wind is a very powerful element that can create both good and evil. You must face the most destructive force that the element of wind can create. You must survive this force and the jewel will be uncovered in the center of where it sees."

Not liking the sound of what the Wind element was telling him, Harry got up and dusted off.

'I have to survive the most destructive force wind can create? Whatever that may be, it doesn't sound as simple as Wind says it is.' Deciding that he didn't really want to wait around for this "destructive force," Harry began walking forward.

After walking for what seemed like forever, Harry began to notice something in the distance.

"What is that? It kind of looks like a tall building, but it seems to be moving. . . . Bloody hell! If that's what I think it is, I better start moving and moving fast."

Noticing what it was that was coming straight for him, Harry admitted to himself that he was frightened. He'd never been in a tornado before but he had heard of the destruction they caused.

Ready to run for his life, Harry remembered what Wind had said to him. '_The jewel will be uncovered in the center of where it sees_.' "That must mean that the jewel is in the tornado's 'eye'. There's no way that I could survive getting into the center of that thing. Even if I can somehow survive the high winds of that thing, the debris circling in it would certainly get me."

Setting his face with stone-cold determination, Harry came to a conclusion to what he was going to do.

"I have to at least try. If I fail, I can still say that I died trying." Steeling himself for what he was about to face, Harry pulled out his two swords and waited for the approaching storm.

When the funnel of wind started getting closer, Harry could feel the dirt and grass whipping around him.

"This has to be the craziest thing I've ever attempted in my life. I'm either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid."

Finally the tornado was upon him. He was instantly pulled up into the air, along with many the sticks and stones that had littered the ground of the grasslands.

Before Harry could brace himself, he was being afflicted by a barrage of very small stones (though they didn't feel small) that he knew would cause bruises later. Finally able to control his body in a somewhat defensive stance, Harry looked around for any approaching debris.

Moments later, Harry could see a volley of what looked like tree trunks and even small boulders.

He started using his swords to defend himself from the deadly onslaught. Cutting up the assailment of debris into manageable sizes with one sword, Harry hit the smaller pieces away from him with the other. After slicing and dicing at the bombardment of trees and stones for what seemed like hours, Harry's luck ran out.

He got hit in the arm with a stone about the size of his fist, effectively breaking it.

Knowing he wouldn't be able to go on much longer with just one arm, he sheathed the sword he had in his broken arm (which he amazingly held onto after the fracture in his arm) and waited for his chance.

Waiting for another boulder to come his way, he reversed the way he held his sword (so that the blade was facing downward) ready to try out his new plan. Once close enough to his target, Harry stabbed his sword into the center of one of the bigger boulders and held on for dear life.

He felt like he was on a boat without a paddle. Although the boulder was protecting him from larger debris, he was still being punished with the pain of the smaller stones and sticks.

Noticing that he was slowly spiraling into the center of the cyclone, Harry silently thanked whoever was watching out for him.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of pain, Harry was close enough to the eye of the storm to follow thru with the next step in his plan.

He slowly turned the rock so that his body was facing the center of the storm and placed his feet onto the side of the boulder, ready to pull out his blade from it. Kicking off of the boulder and pulling out his sword simultaneously, Harry accurately launched himself toward his destination.

Before reaching the eye, Harry hit a sort of wall that held stronger winds than the rest of the tornado.

As soon as he hit this 'wall' he was battered heavily from head to toe with an onslaught of debris.

Being thrown into the eye with broken glasses and broken legs, all Harry could see was a bright light. No, luckily it wasn't the light leading to death. This was actually the light leading to life.

Right there in front of him was the elemental jewel.

With his last ounce of strength, Harry lifted his unbroken arm and plucked the jewel from the air.

Almost immediately, the tornado dispersed and Harry was being lowered to the ground slowly by a light uplift of wind. Suddenly, standing in his line of sight was Lady Wind.

"Again Harry, you have surprised us with your bravery and determination. You have passed my task with flying colors. In fact, not many of the other elemental mages that have come before you even faced the tornado. Even fewer actually passed the task. I will heal your wounds and refill you with energy. You still have one more task to do before you complete your quest. Good luck to you, warrior of the light."

Healing his wounds and energy levels, Lady Wind smiled down at Harry.

She was genuinely proud of the young man before her and was sure that he would pass his next task, whatever that may be.

As the smiling face of Lady Wind blurred out of his vision, Harry appeared in a deep gorge with nothing but dirt and rocks in sight.

'Last one. After this I can go home with another tool in my fight against Voldemort. Everything seems to happen to me but I'm actually glad things are going my way. Voldemort won't know what hit him.'

Before Harry could start investigating his surroundings more, the voice, of what he assumed was Earth, spoke to him of his next task.

"Your final task will by far be the most physically and mentally difficult. You must go through this chasm using your mind and body to help you overcome the battles and challenges presented to you throughout this canyon. Arrive at the end of this ravine to receive your elemental power."

Starting at a jog, Harry was determined to pass this task as quickly as he could. He wanted to get this quest over with so that he could go back to his normal life. Even if his life isn't exactly normal.

Arriving in an area littered with large boulders, Harry stopped. He could feel a presence in the air that he didn't like.

'Where are you?' Harry thought, 'I know you're here somewhere.' Looking around at the surrounding area, Harry didn't see the boulder coming until the last second. Diving out of the way just in time, Harry saw what he was looking for.

He could see what appeared to be, Golems made out of stone, throwing boulders into the canyon from its ledge.

Knowing that the only logical thing to do in this situation is run, Harry did just that. He ran as fast as his legs would allow, dodging boulders about every ten feet.

As if dodging the boulders from above wasn't enough, an arm appeared from one of the fallen boulders and clothes-lined Harry to the ground.

Looking up into the face of a man that was obviously one of Earth's minions, Harry shot up with a kick to the minion's face and simultaneously pulled out his sword. The man was molded from hard dirt that looked rock-hard and indestructible.

Harry, with total faith in his family's swords, swung a sword at the man's neck but was dodged effectively.

"I was just beginning to think that this task couldn't get any harder but then you show up. Fate just has it in for me doesn't it?"

Using his learned Kuwatzu, Harry sprung into the air and did a spinning kick into the man's chest.

While knocking him onto the ground, Harry ran for it. He knew that he just had to make it to the finish line and wasn't going to waste any time.

Harry finally arrived at a clearing where he wasn't being targeted with boulders and stopped. He knew there was a reason for the sudden stop of the volley but wasn't exactly sure what that reason was. Soon enough, the reason was revealed to him.

Approximately thirty of the dirt minions materialized out of the ground.

Not backing down to the unfairness of the battle, Harry unsheathed his second sword.

Outnumbered, Harry faced the numerous opponents with unmatched courage.

Starting the face-off with a war cry, Harry slashed at the barrier of opponents with amazing passion and skill. Fueled with adrenaline, when Harry suffered blows, he was able to disregard the pain that came with them. Reducing the number of opponents greatly, Harry was renewed with a hope of victory before the thought was shut down again.

The remaining dozen or so opponents, fearing their defeat, molded together to form a single but larger and stronger adversary.

"Bloody hell! Don't I ever get a break? Well, as the saying goes, 'The bigger they are the harder they fall.'"

Bracing himself for the upcoming encounter, Harry got into the Kuwatzu defense position. As his monstrous challenger started his approach, Harry noticed it's slow movements.

Each step caused a small tremor in the surrounding area, but Harry knew his assailant was still at a disadvantage.

'He may be a hundred times stronger than me now, but I'm a lot faster. If I can find a way to make him fall to the ground, I've got this fight in the bag.'

Deriving a plan in his head, Harry set to work. Running straight for his opponent, Harry went directly between his legs, effectively confusing his opponent.

The only thing that his adversary had not noticed was that, while running in between it's legs, Harry had sliced straight through the ankle of the monster's right foot. Due to the giant's ignorance of the situation, it tried turning around to face Harry and ended up falling face first into the ground.

With a whoop of victory, Harry set off at a sprint for the end of the canyon. Arriving at his final destination, Harry couldn't believe his success. There, shining as bright as a star was the golden-  
brown Earth jewel.

Walking up to it, Harry grabbed hold of it and immediately felt his skin sculpting into the form of the Earth rune, right next to the water sign.

Right after the rune formed on his back, Harry's surroundings changed once again. He found himself in the same dark abyss that he started his quest at, along with the elemental four.

"Is it over? Have I proven myself to you guys yet?"

"I'm afraid not child. This is only the beginning." Seeing the look of disbelief on Harry's face, the elemental four started laughing.

"We are jesting young one. You have proven yourself most effectively. You have passed your tasks with masterful skill and have earned the rights to the powers of our elements. You must remember, the powers you have received are still raw and uncontrolled. You must train yourself in the art of the elements in order to become proficient with your new powers."

"Thank you so much. I'm sure you already know this, but these elemental powers will really help me in my upcoming battle with my archenemy, Voldemort. I am training right now to become the best that I can be and this is just another weapon to help me win this war."

"Of course we know. It is one of the many reasons you were chosen for this honor. We must warn you though. The dark lord has many powers that may match your own at times. He has more years of wisdom and experience in his hands that will give him a great advantage. You must learn all that you can, but remember, Do not let this war rule your life. Find friendship, happiness, and most importantly, love. These will help you the most on your journey to victory. Goodbye child. It has been an honor to help you on the road to your destiny."

With the Element's final words, Harry awakened in his room with a smile on his face. He knew what these powers meant to the good of the wizarding world and was ready to train himself as best he could.

Ready for a few more hours of sleep, Harry laid down on his bed.

Before closing his eyes though, a blinding flash crossed through his room that thoroughly brought him back to total awareness.

Thanks to Tuxedomac, Lady of Masbolle, Dr Gero, Pottter, and Lady of the Dragons2 for reviewing. Make sure you keep it up.

Tuxedomac: I put in the rest of the elements in this chapter so I hope it's long enough for you. Sorry about the grammar but I finally got a beta to help me up with that. Just remember, I'm not a total Idiot, just one typing up a story late at night. Harry knew about the lava because of the ashes in the air. Don't Volcanoes only create the ashes when they erupt? Plus, It's the fire element. It was said that the jewel would be in 'the mountain of heat.' What else could that be besides a volcano? Thanks for the review! Later

Lady of Masbolle: Thanks for the beta offer but Dr Gero asked first and I gave it to him. Put some more action into this chapter so I hope you like. Thanks for reviewing.

Pottter: I guess this chapter explained your question about the elements so there you go. You'll just have to keep reading to find out about any other powers. Wink-Wink-Nudge-Nudge-Ya know-Ya know

Lady of the Dragons2: Sorry about the delay in this chapter but, as said above, I couldn't help it. Here's the wind element in this chapter so I hope you like. H/G? Don't worry, as much as I like teasing you about it, I won't change the ship. Harry/Ginny is my favorite and that's probably what I'll end up writing. Keep Reviewing! Later

To you readers out there. You know what to do ; )

Lots of thank to my new beta, Dr Gero!

Till next time...


	7. Back to the Real World: Pain and Pleasur...

Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own it. Don't bother me about it cause I do not, repeat, do not own Harry Potter. The great JKR does.

A/N: Sorry about the delay in this chapter. After Hurricane Jeanne hit us, I had a lot to do to catch up with school and I had to take the plywood off the windows of my house. There's not much action in this one, just one of those fill-in chapters. I added Hedwig into the story since I guess I had left her out. Hope you like...enjoy. Thanks to Dr. Gero for being a great Beta! All the previous spacing problems have been fixed by him in the earlier chapters, they should be easier to read now.

**BACK TO THE REAL WORLD: PAIN AND PLEASURE**

**BY: CHICANOSURFER01**

Harry grabbed hold of his wand as he rolled off of his bed, into a crouch, on the opposite side of where the light came from.

"Bloody hell! What was all that about?"

After a long screech from Hedwig, Harry slowly looked around the corner of his bed. Still in the crouching position, Harry noticed a soft light coming from a pile of what looked like boxes in the far corner of his room. He got up, entranced by the ethereal glow of the packages, deciding to get a better look.

As he got closer, Harry noticed that one of the three packages was moving. Not wanting to be caught off guard, Harry kept his wand pointed at the box while he lifted the lid. As soon as he did though, he was immediately tackled by a small ball of blue fluff.

After noticing the ball of blue fur was actually a little wolf cub, Harry laughed. When he had first been hit by the thing, he had screamed like a little girl that had seen a mouse.

"I'm glad I have that silencing charm on now. If the neighbors had heard me scream like that, they would have probably called the police."

Turning his attention to the cerulean wolf cub, Harry felt an immediate connection that could only be described as a paternal bond. Harry wasn't sure why, but he could feel the trust and love between the small animal and himself. Keeping the cub in his arms, Harry started on to the next package. Before he could go on though, an envelope appeared in his outstretched hand.

Opening up the envelope, Harry noticed that the seal was designed in the form of the four runes on his back. Immediately figuring it had something to do with the elements, he pulled out four pieces of parchment and started reading with an excited haste.

_Dear Harry,_

_You have shown in your tasks to us that you are, beyond your great wizardry, an amazing human being. You've shown compassion, courage, and astonishing determination. We have chosen to give to you these gifts to help you on the adventure you call life. We hope that what we have bestowed upon you will benefit you in some way. On top of these gifts, we give you our praise on how well you did on your elemental quest. Inclosed is an explanation of our gifts and how we hope they will help you._

_Full of hope for your victory,_

_The Elemental Four_

Not expecting to hear from the elements again, much less receive presents from them, it was easy to say Harry was shocked. He started on the next short letter that explained the gift from the fire element.

_Harry,_

_The battle that you faced in my task was definitely not an easy one for you, but you overcame it. You have shown that you could handle yourself well in a sword fight, but we have a new weapon for you. We saw how well you handled yourself with your ancestral swords, but some things don't come so easily. You may find yourself in a tight position where you may be too far away for sword-to-sword combat and need to act quickly. We have given you the gift of the elemental bow and arrows. You must learn to fire the arrows with acute accuracy to fulfill your needs. The arrows may be used to create any of the elements, on impact, at your will. However, you must train yourself to control each element before you will be able to achieve this. Use this weapon well, you may not always have access to your magic and you may have to put your life in the hands of your other weapons._

_Good Luck,_

_Fire & Earth_

Opening up the longest package, Harry found the amazing weapon. The mahogany colored bow was covered in intricate carvings of vines engulfed in flames. Truly a sight to behold. Moving on to the arrows, he noticed that the satchel had four compartments that separated the arrows. He noticed that the compartments were separating different colored arrows, supposedly each controlling a certain element.

"Now this is what I'm talkin' about." Harry admired the superior weapon that was specifically fit for his body type and stature.

Deciding he wanted to find out about his other two gifts, Harry moved on to the next piece of parchment.

_Dear Harry,_

_My task was not an easy one to pass at all. You may not have had to confront many physical battles but you showed your true power of emotion_s._ You can not become an emotionless fighter. I am not telling you to get lost in the grief of war, for in war there will always be losses. I am telling you to not hide behind your role in this fight. You must find love in your friends and family, you can not hide from them. Soon you will find your soul mate and you must not recoil from your feelings. Confront them and do not be afraid of the consequences. When you feel the time is right, that you have found your special someone, tell them and you will most likely find the same feelings being felt for you. My gift to you is the gift of friendship. I have given you the wolf cub to give you a companion on your journeys. It is an aqua-wolf; a type of magical canine that can breath underwater and also has slight control of the element of water. I hope that you enjoy the time you spend with your new familiar. He is tied with your life source, which causes him to live as long as you live. He will always be with you, and the longer he is, the stronger your bond will be._

_I expect great things from you,_

_Lady Water_

Looking down at the little blue cub in his arms, Harry understood the new bond he had with the animal. It was a friend till the end and he could already tell.

Picking up the next package, Harry lifted the lid and found a silver egg smaller than the size of his fist. 'I wonder what this is? Kinda looks like an egg but I've never seen an egg like this before.' Knowing there was only one way to find out, he started on the last letter.

_Dear Harry,_

_Deciding on your gift was an easy one. The way you fought your way through my task was amazing. Your strength and determination, along with some of your pride, reminded me of this bird. From this egg will hatch a bird that is believed to be a myth for its magical abilities. This bird was called a _Thunder Snidget._ It is a cousin to a bird you may have heard of, a Golden Snidget. It is the equivalent to a phoenix with different elements. While a Phoenix is known for the element of fire, the Thunder snidget is know for its control over lightning. It will be have a sort of 'burning day' as the phoenix does, but will be brought out by a stroke of lightning instead of bursting into flames. While it does have similarities to the phoenix clan, the appearances are very different. It is only slightly larger than it's cousin, the golden snidget, which is known to have been the model for the Snitch in a Quidditch game. It will grow to about the size of your head but will be reverted to the size of your fist after each burning day. It may be a small bird, but don't let it fool you, it is very powerful. Keep the egg close to you and warm until it hatches._

_Take care,_

_Lady Wind_

Not knowing what to think of the gifts, or how to reply to the letter, Harry took the egg and his new cub to bed with him. After his great adventure he was really tired.

It seemed like he was on his quest for weeks, but truly he wasn't sure how long he was gone. He didn't even know if he had left his room throughout his whole elemental quest. So, with a troubled mind, Harry fell asleep

"Tap...tap...tap...."

Harry awoke to the sound of an owl tapping on his window. Noticing that it was still dark outside, he knew he had only had a few hours of sleep, but was unusually refreshed.

Opening his window to a cool breeze, he grabbed a hold of the excited Pigwidgeon and detached the letter. Sitting on his bed, He didn't know what to make of it. For one thing, this was the first ever letter that he had from this person, but even weirder was what she was writing.

_Dear Harry,_

_Oh, please respond to this letter Harry. Everyone is overwhelmed with worry ever since you disappeared three weeks ago. I don't know what to say when each owl just comes back with the same letter sent with it. They say this only happens whenever a person is in an unreachable place or. . . or that their dead. I just hope that it is the former rather than the latter. We need you to be here for us Harry. I don't know what this world will be without you and I don't want to know. We had plans for your birthday party next week and of course you need to be there for any celebration to ensue. Please answer this . . . please don't be gone forever. I miss you, we all do, so if you get this, please reply. At least let us know that your okay._

_Love,_

_Ginny_

Harry was thoroughly shocked. For one thing, the letter said he had disappeared for three weeks. His birthday was next week for bloody sakes!

What shocked him the most though, was not the sincerity that Ginny was showing in the letter, but the tear stains that covered the whole parchment.

The letter made him feel like a complete git, even if he hadn't meant to disappear.

Sitting at his desk after a quick decision, he wrote an immediate reply before putting on his tracksuit and going for his run.

At the Burrow

On the small couch of the Weasley household you could find a beautiful redhead looking up at the stars. Looking closer, you could tell that there were tears coming out of the petite girl's eyes.

For the past three weeks, this scene was a regular occurrence. The girl was waiting for a response to her letters from Harry Potter, but at the same time had come to not expect the response. She would never lose hope, but at the same time was coming to terms with the disappearance. So, when the small owl tapped at her window, she snapped out of her reverie and went slowly to the window.

Grabbing the owl in her hand, she almost dropped it again when she noticed the handwriting on the new letter. Opening up the parchment with an excited air around her, you could see the brilliant smile come to her face.

_Dear Ginny,_

_I'm sorry that I have worried you with my disappearance, but I had no control over it. I have been training for the inevitable war and I am back now. I am hoping to use my disappearance to my advantage and not tell anyone of my arrival yet. I want to train on my own until next week on my birthday. I will arrive at the burrow on my birthday so be expecting me. Please don't tell anyone I'm back yet. Enclosed is a decoy letter that you can show the others saying that I'm okay and that I'll be at the burrow on my birthday. Show them that to stop their worry. You can still write me if you like, I'm sorry that I made you cry but it's all okay now. I was never in any danger and am perfectly fine. I'll be awaiting your reply. Thank you._

_Love,_

_Harry _

Blushing about the 'Love' at the end of his letter, Ginny berated herself on how she was 'over' Harry, and that he meant it in a friendly way.

Without a moment to lose she started screaming for everyone about the reply.

The whole household, including Hermione who had come over after the disappearance, awoke and came downstairs to see about the commotion Ginny was making. Gathering around her, everyone stopped at the sight of her smile, not having seen it in three weeks.

"What's going on Ginny? What were you screaming about?" Arthur asked his only daughter.

"Harry just sent me a reply! He says he's perfectly fine! See for yourself." Handing them the decoy letter, Ginny watched as her father read out the script.

_Dear Ginny,_

_I'm sorry about making everyone worried when I disappeared without notice. I just needed some time for myself and maybe some time to get ready for the coming war. Please tell everyone that I'm fine and that I'll be back at the Burrow on my birthday. I'm sorry again about making you worried, I'll see you on my birthday._

_Love,_

_Harry_

"See guys, He's fine! He wrote back finally and we'll see him on his birthday." Said a very excited Ginny.

"Let's have a cup of tea everyone. It should calm the excitement down while I owl Dumbledore." Molly ordered every one of her children, excluding the oldest three but including Hermione, into the kitchen while she went for her parchment and quill.

Something about Ginny's happy attitude, even though her hope for Harry's life was refueled, was very suspicious to Hermione. Not wanting to bother with it right now, as she was elated over the subject herself, she sipped her tea and watched the excited conversations around the table. Well, everyone except Ron. He seemed to be angry about something but Hermione wasn't sure what. Deciding to ask him about it later, she happily relaxed in her chair.

"...ninety-eight...ninety-nine...one-hundred...."

Getting up from his cool down exercises, Harry was surprised. A few weeks ago, he hadn't been able to do half of the run or sit-ups and push-ups he had done today. The thing was though, he wasn't even that tired yet. Shaking out of his state of shock, he went upstairs and jumped in the shower.

As Harry got out of the shower and started drying off, he noticed himself in the mirror.

"Bloody Hell! When did this happen? It's only been a few weeks!"

In the mirror was what appeared to be a male-model with Harry's startling green eyes. His chiseled body and rock hard abs were ones that came with months of training. The only thing was that it had only been a total of about four weeks!

Harry could definitely see it was him, his face was what gave him away. He did have some stubble growing on his face which made him look older, around nineteen or twenty, but you could still see the old Harry. He looked on his back and looked at the four runes. The closest thing Harry could compare them to was some calligraphy or maybe Japanese style writings that he had seen in one of Dudley's school books.

The more he looked at him though, the more he liked them. He felt more 'rebellious' with them, something he had never been able to do. Whether being bossed around by the Dursleys or having his life planned out by a prophecy, he never really had the chance to do anything without consent.

Coming to a quick decision, Harry decided not to be pushed around this year. Even Dumbledore seemed to have everything planned out for him. Yes, he would continue training for the inevitable, but he was going to do what he wanted to when he wanted to.

"I may have to fight Voldemort later on, but right now is my time."

After admiring his new physique for a few more seconds he went back to his room. Almost immediately he was pounced on by his new pet. Holding the small cub to his chest, he started pondering on a name for it.

"What should I call you little one? You do seem to pounce a lot don't you?"

Going through a couple names, in which the dog whimpered as if he didn't like them, Harry was about to give up. Laying on top of his bed, Harry looked up into the jewel like eyes of his new familiar.

"That's it! You're a girl, how about Sapphire?" Giving an excited bark, the puppy started licking Harry's face. "Alright already," Harry laughed, "I have to get some training done and then we'll play. Alright?"

Having been playing with his new wolf cub had reminded him of his own wolf Animagus form. He wasn't exactly sure what it was, but he could tell it was magical. The changing color trick sure wasn't normal. Pulling out his magical creatures book, he began looking for the wolf like creature. Stopping somewhat in the center of the book he found what he was looking for.

There, on the page, was a picture depicting the same animal he had turned into. After admiring the shift of fur color for a moment, Harry began to read the creatures description:

_The Eclipso wolf. _

_Once believed to be actually two species of the same type of wolf, is a magical canine that emits it's powers with the transition of fur color. The name Eclipso came from the changing of fur color from black to silver and vice versa. They were previously known as night and lunar wolves, when they were thought of as two different animals, for their fur colors. Because of the rarity in seeing this animal, it was only recently discovered that they were both in fact, one animal. Changing their name to Eclipso for their stealth and powers, not forgetting their fur colors, the wolves were revealed to be magical creatures. These animals have powers of Telepathy, where they can read and speak into people's minds unblockable by Occlumency. It is also rumored that it's stealth comes from an ability to 'shadow melt', a skill that allows the animal to blend into it's surroundings and walk around unnoticed. An Eclipso is a very rare and powerful creature that is only seen when it wants to be seen. Just because you can't see them, doesn't mean they aren't there._

'Wow,' thought Harry, 'I can't believe I'm an eclipso. I've never even heard of this type of creature before now. I wonder if I can turn into it again? It did make me pass out last time. I'll have to try sooner or later anyways"

Deciding to try out the transformation sooner rather than later, Harry pulled out his textbook and began to read. He wasn't really worried about the first steps of Animagus training since he had already transformed, but he did want to lessen the pain and transform easier.

_In order to start transforming into your Animagus form, you must start with body parts. Picture your body part 'growing' into the equivalent body-part of your form. Grow the fur or scales of your Animagus from your skin. Imagine yourself as if you were the animal and what it would feel like. Try this technique with each part of your body until you can effectively turn into it quickly and then try bigger portions of your body. Keep up the routine until you think your ready for the full change. Imagine yourself as the animal, as you did with the parts, and you should transform slowly. The pain of your transformations will lessen with time and practice. By the time your ready, you will be numb to the pain._

Sitting down on the floor, Harry began the exercises.

He found growing the fur and paws fairly easy if not painful. Though he hadn't progressed slowly as the book suggested, he felt he was ready for the transformation.

Picturing the animal in his mind, Harry concentrated on every detail. He imagined what the fur, the teeth, the entire body would feel like. Finally, deciding he was ready, he willed his body to changed.

Slowly, he started to feel it. At first the pain was minimal, like being pricked with a needle, but soon it grew into being stabbed. Trying to hold the screams in, Harry could hear Sapphire whimpering along with Hedwig's hoots. Finally, he couldn't hold it in any longer. He screamed.

He tore at his vocal cords as he let the pain show through his yells and screams. Letting it all out, Harry could feel his bones twisting shape. Though it was less than five minutes, it felt as though the pain afflicted his body for hours before stopping.

When the pain did stop, he felt amazing.

He was in an unfamiliar body with unfamiliar feelings but his instincts told him it was right. He wasn't sure if it was his animal's instincts or his own that was making him feel this way, but he didn't have time to ponder it.

Moments after his transformation, his black coat shifted into his silver one. The odd part about it was that, when he did change, an ethereal glow started growing around his body. His body felt better than before. The glow grew until he was effectively blinded by the light. Harry was not bothered by the gleam and with the growth of the glow came a feeling of pure ecstasy and unimaginable euphoria.

**A/N:** Thanks to Manda, BattleRaven, battlefield-addict, Arathorn, Bloodless Ace, jbfritz, MaxFic, dishant, Lady of Masbolle, Egyptian Flame, TuxedoMac, Lady of the Dragons2, and Dr Gero for reviewing th last chapter. Make sure you guys keep doing that ;)

Lady of the Dragons2: Glad you liked the wind element, it was actually the hardest for me to plan out. Wanted to do something a little different and I'm glad you approve. Dumbledore will see the new and improved Harry soon, maybe the next chapter. As you can see, Im sending him to the Weasley's soon and should have a confrontation. P.S. this chapter is the start of the H/G!

Dr Gero: I kinda put the animagus form in here. I should finish it up next chapter, but it wont be the last you see of transformations. . .wink wink.

TuxedoMac: Thanks for the praise. You can thank Dr. Gero for fixing up the spacing in my writing. Hopefully everything will be easier to read now.

Egyptian Flame: Thanks for reading my story even though your not an H/G fan. I'm not gonna make H/G the center of my story, just the relationship Harry is in. I think you can make any relationship with Harry work, depending on how you build the characters. I'll keep the H/G mostly as the romance part of the fic but it wont be too big a deal.

Dishant: Hope the spacing is better for you. Thanks for the review.

MaxFic: thanks for the tip. I appreciate your review and constructive criticism. I'm just starting on your story today, I want to get back to reading a couple fics again, and yours seems really good.

Arathorn: Appreciate the review, even if my story isn't in your language. I hope you like it and continue to review.

Manda: Caught that huh? Wasn't sure if anyone would get it or not when I put it in. I had just finished watching the movie again when I started that part of the story. The name just kind of popped in my head. Thanks for the review!

Thanks to my Beta Dr. Gero.

To all of you readers out there, make sure you review! Later


	8. Back to the Burrow: The Start of the Re...

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Harry Potter. J. K. R. Does. If you want to bother somebody, bother her. Of course, If you want to give the Harry Potter empire to someone . . . .

**A/N. **Sorry about my total lack of updates in the past month. I've had something interfering with my time every weekend and plenty of stuff during the week. I've had SAT 's, Magnolia Festival, work, hella projects, and wrestling season recently started back up again. Again I'm sorry but please enjoy the chapter. Hopefully the next chapter will be up a lot sooner than this one. I'll be trying to update weekly again, but with practice everyday it might be every other week. Your reviews are what made me sit down and start writing this no matter what I have to do. In fact I'm about to start on another project that's due tomorrow! Thanks to my beta Dr. Gero who stayed faithful even after my long pause. TTYL

**BACK TO THE BURROW: THE START OF THE REST OF THE SUMMER**

**BY: CHICANOSURFER01**

It felt good, it felt really good. He didn't want it to stop. It was as though he was receiving the gifts of knowledge in the form of pleasure. He could feel things connecting with his mind that were his thoughts, but in a way were also raw instincts. All things good do have to come to an end and this feeling was not exempt to the rule. He hated that this feeling of ecstasy was so short, when only moments before he had felt what seemed like endless amounts of pain. Slowly opening his eyes, Harry looked around his room, getting used to the new body. His sight seemed to have become very sharp and distinct, which he wasn't used to with his glasses. He could see a light in everything he laid his eyes on. It seemed like there was a type of aura around every living thing outside his window. He discovered the most amazing sight when he looked at his new wolf cub.

Sapphire was engulfed in a glow of bluish green light. She was just sitting on the bed chewing on the blanket but was already showing some of her power.

'It must be because she's a magical creature that she looks like that. That's totally amazing.'

Deciding to explore his new form and see what he looked like, Harry walked up to the mirror. Looking at himself, Harry's eyes grew as large as saucers. He was engulfed in a similar light to Sapphire but was bigger and colored silver. At the moment he was in his black fur form and liked what he saw. He could tell he was a powerful animal. He could feel his strong muscles in his legs and back, allowing him the great speed that he was sure he could achieve.

'I wonder if I can melt into the shadows yet? It didn't say much about it in the book so I'll have to figure it out on my own.'

Harry closed his eyes and concentrated on hiding himself in the shadow of the corner of his room. Feeling himself blending into his surroundings, he opened his eyes. He wasn't sure if he had succeeded in the new ability until he heard a voice that he was sure wasn't his, somewhere in his mind.

'_Daddy! Where are you daddy!? I can feel you, but you disappeared! Come back Daddy!_'

It sounded like a little girl's voice, but he wasn't sure where it was coming from. Pondering on the voice, he remembered his telepathic abilities in this Animagus form. Going on a hunch, he looked up at his bed to see Sapphire freaking out. She was running from one end of the bed to the other and seemed to be whimpering rather loudly. Stepping out of the shadows, Harry transformed back into a human and went up to the bed where Sapphire jumped into his arms.

'_Daddy! Where did you go?_'

Totally surprised, Harry didn't know what to say. He wasn't just shocked by the cub jumping into his arms, but by the ability to understand what the cub was saying in his human form. Not sure how to send his thoughts yet, Harry just sat down and started petting the small cub.

**At Grimmauld Place**

The Honorable House of Black was in total disarray. The whole of the Order of the Phoenix was gathered there, wanting to see the letter from Harry for themselves. They wanted proof that their hero was alive and well. Everyone had been worried sick about what Voldemort would do once he found out about the disappearance of The-Boy-Who-Lived.

"SILENCE!" This one word from Dumbledore was filled with so much power that it effectively shut everyone in the room up. They waited anxiously for his orders. As the Leader of their organization, Dumbledore was usually used as a light of guidance in the dark path of war.

"As much as I want to believe that this letter is from young Harry, we can not be sure. It could just be a trap in the form of a blessing. We will accept the person coming here on July 31st with open arms, whether it be Mr. Potter or not, we will be on guard. We must not let ourselves be blinded by the light of hope. I want this to be Harry as much as you do, but we must be cautious." Dumbledore knew how to handle situations of this manner and waited patiently for the onslaught of questions that he was sure would come.

"But sir! It just has to be him! We did kind of push him around last year. Maybe he just needed his space." Molly needed a resolution to the disappearance of her 'adoptive' son.

"Molly dear, everything will be fine. There is a chance that this is Harry; we just need to make sure that it's him when he arrives." Arthur's words soothed his wife's anxiety into a worried frown.

"For now though friends, we act as though it is our young Harry and prepare for his birthday party." With his last words, Dumbledore rose and left from the dining room table.

"I suppose he's right everybody, we can't just expect You-Know-Who to not try something like this if Harry is really gone." Molly Weasley had come to a decision to just use caution with Harry's reappearance.

**Number 4 Privet Drive**: Thursday, One Day Before The Birthday Party

"What do I need to take Sapphire? Do you think I should stay awhile? I did leave them worrying for three weeks, it's the least I could do." Harry looked down at his wolf cub who just tilted her head and blinked her big eyes. Deciding to take everything he had, which wasn't much, the only thing he decided to leave out was his money pouch for the Knight Bus fare. Packing up the rest of his belongings in his trunk, Harry used his staff to shrink it small enough to fit in his pocket.

Knowing that walking around with a staff was kind of noticeable, Harry had made a hemp necklace using the jewels from the elements and leaving a space in the middle with his staff. All he had to do to hide his magical weapon, was to shrink it and hang it in the golden loop in-between the four jewels. He knew he couldn't let anyone in on his secrets yet, everything was so complicated and he needed to figure it all out for himself first. He understood everything that was going on, but when he sat down and thought about it, he had been so different from what he is now, just a couple weeks ago.

"Only a few hours to go before I leave for the Burrow. If I'm going by Knight Bus I'm going to need to leave before daybreak."

Sleeping with his clothes on, Harry was awakened a few hours later from the beeping of his alarm clock. Turning over and hitting the off button on his alarm, Harry jumped out of bed and collected his belongings quickly. Putting the Snidget egg in his inside pocket along with his shrunken trunk, Harry picked up Sapphire and went over to a fluttering Hedwig.

"I'm about to go to Diagon Alley girl. I'll be at the Weasley's in a few hours if you'd like to fly there and stretch your wings a bit."

With an affirmative hoot on Hedwig's part, Harry opened up her cage and set her loose. Watching her until she was a white speck in the dark sky, Harry turned and left Number four. Once out on the street, Harry Pulled out his wand and waved for the Knight Bus to come pick him up. A few seconds later, with a resounding boom, the Knight Bus appeared in front of him.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus, The wizarding world's number one form of transportation for the stranded witch or wizard. My name is Stan, How may I help you?"

Knowing exactly what Stan said, even if he said it all in one quick breath, Harry looked Stan straight in the eyes for a moment before responding.

"I don't have a name, so don't ask. I want to go directly to Diagon Alley, No Stops before. I trust that you can do this, along with no one knowing I was on this bus. It shouldn't be difficult as I don't have a name."

Pulling out his Money pouch, Harry placed ten Galleons in a stunned Stan's hand. Not waiting for a response from Stan, he brushed past him and laid down on one of the beds. A few seconds later, Harry heard Stan yell out, "Next stop, Diagon Alley!" Pulling his coat around him tighter, with Sapphire next to him, Harry fell asleep for the hour long-drive to London.

"Um . . . excuse me sir? We will be in Diagon Alley within the next five minutes if you would like to wake up."

"Thanks Stan. I appreciate you doing this for me."

"Not a problem... Mr. Potter." Stan said the last part in a whisper.

"How did you know? Could you see my scar?"

"Actually sir, I could barely see the scar with your new tan. I wasn't positive at first, but it was something in your eyes that gave you away. At first you sort of intimidated me, but I remember the first time you rode the bus, saying you were Neville Longbottom. You see, I have what they call a photographic memory. I can remember things like I was seeing them in front of my face. Anyways, We're about to arrive, so it's time to wake up."

At the end of Stan's last words, the bus arrived with another loud bang in front of the Leaky Cauldron. Getting off the bus quickly, Harry turned back to give a last thank you to Stan before walking in the front door of the rackety looking Leaky Cauldron.

The first thing Harry noticed when he went through the door, was that almost every head turned his way. It wasn't as if the bar was slow or anything, in fact it seemed as if people had been arriving for breakfast time. Harry wasn't exactly sure what was going on but it wasn't normal. Instead of stopping for breakfast as he had planned, Harry went straight to the backdoor and opened the gate to Diagon Alley. Having had time to analyze the full setting of the restaurant, Harry began to notice small things he had overlooked before. Thinking to himself, he began to fit pieces of the puzzle together.

'Dung was in there! And I think that was Moody closing the door to the back room!'

Walking past all of the usual shops that he went to for his school supplies, Harry walked into a little restaurant named: The Magical Mushroom. He had never been in there before, it just looked quiet and there was a sign outside with breakfast items displayed.

'Well, I might as well get myself something to eat. It's too early for me to go to the Burrow so I have to waste time anyways.'

Entering the small corner shop, Harry immediately caught the aroma of herbs and spices with a small hint of sausage. Before he even realized it though, Harry was startled out of his reverie by a tall black man with dreaded hair.

"Hey mon, how shall I help you this fine mornin'? Would ya like some breakfast?"

His accent seemed to come from somewhere around the Jamaican Islands. Harry couldn't quite pinpoint the place, but he could tell the man was friendly.

"Well, yes. I would like some breakfast, and maybe a paper. What would you recommend me from the menu?"

"Well mon, back on the island we have traditional meals served differently throughout the week. Of course, we're in London right now so, how 'bout I just cook you up some of my favorites? How bout some Bush Tea while you wait?"

"That would be great sir. I'd like to try something new."

"There's no sir around 'ere, call me Delroy"

"Nice to meet you Delroy. I'm Harry by the way"

With a smile as a response, Delroy handed Harry a paper and went back to the kitchen to serve up a plate of breakfast. Opening up the paper, Harry saw something that basically made his whole day. Right there on the front page of the Daily Prophet was Minister Fudge

_**Removal from Office? Or Just a Wake Up Call?**_

_Last night, there was some major decision making by the Wizengamot, on the future of the wizarding world. The major issue of the meeting was mostly about Minister Fudge's incompetence in leading the wizarding world. Not admitting to the reformation of the Death Eater forces and the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was a grave mistake that has thankfully been brought to light. In fact, having been warned by The-Boy-Who-Lived more than a year ago, his decisions in the matter may cost him his minister status. Word on Fudge's removal has been denied to us until further notice. When asked about the removal, Albus Dumbledore answered with, _

"_That decision will come when the time is right. Though his decision to not handle the matter sooner was wrong, he is the minister and we will need a minister in the coming time."_

_So is the minister going to be the minister for much longer? Who knows? Although issues were discussed in the meeting last night, many of the important decisions that need to be made may be unknown to the public for an unknown amount of time._

_Mona Frofallo_

_Daily Prophet Reporter_

"Here is your Bush Tea Harry. Your breakfast should be up in a bit." Said Delroy, popping out of nowhere, startling Harry out of his revere.

"Oh! Thanks mate, I appreciate it."

"No problem, mon"

Going back into the kitchen, Delroy left Harry to his thoughts on the article.

'I wonder if Fudge is really being Voted out of office? If they do, who will be the minister? What will we do about the coming war? Man, I really need to get into the loop of things in this war. After all, it will be me against Him in the end.'

Not letting himself get back into the dark thoughts about the war, Harry went back to drinking his tea and exciting himself on his future stay with the Weasleys. He hadn't been there in a long time and was getting anxious about seeing everyone again. Daydreaming about the party the Weasleys were throwing for him, Harry felt like no time passed when Delroy appeared with his breakfast.

"Hey mon, I gotcha all my favorites in one meal. We've got bacon and ham, a fried egg sandwich, cornmeal porridge, and the famous Jamaican fruit, Ackee." Delroy just smiled at the look on Harry's face. Harry's eyes were as big as saucers, awaiting the wonderful looking meal.

Harry's mouth was basically watering at the smell of the food. He was sure he looked possessed as he started munching down the food. He hadn't realized how hungry he actually was until the food was placed in front of him. With a muffled thanks to Delroy, Harry totally devoured the food in record time. No less than five minutes after the food had arrived, did it disappear.

"So did you enjoy the Jamaican breakfast Harry?" Delroy said this with a smile as he picked up the spotless plates off the table.

"Definitely Delroy. I've never really had anything like that before. I never really go out to restaurants, but I really enjoyed the meal you prepared for me. Oh yeah, how much do I owe you?" Harry patted his stomach to show he was satisfied with the meal and got up from the table.

"One galleon and three knuts is the bill."

"Keep the change Delroy, it was worth every knut." Passing Delroy three galleons, Harry shook his hand goodbye.

As he left The Magical Mushroom, Harry was fully content, not only with his hunger, but with the great day that was upon him. Being only about 8:30 A.M., Harry had about four hours to kill before he Flooed to the Burrow. Not having anything better to do, Harry started walking around, trying to find something to do. Harry passed many shops he had never been into before and all seemed very interesting. There was an armory, a library, a few restaurants, and even a clothing store more dedicated to the muggle style. Not really needing to enter any of the stores at the moment, Harry continued his exploration. After walking around, window-shopping, he found a shop that was of great interest to him. It was a magical tattoo parlor. Having never even heard of one, Harry decided to go in and look around.

As he entered the shop, it was almost exactly as he imagined a tattoo parlor to be like. As you walked in, there was a fairly large room, larger than it appeared on the outside at least, that had different designs and pictures covering the walls. As he started to walk around and look at all the pictures, Harry started thinking of his elemental tattoos.

'I wonder if anyone will notice them? I hope not. I don't really want people to ask how I got them. Maybe I should get another tattoo, one that will take the attention away from the others.'

Still thinking hard about what he should get, Harry jumped when the shopkeeper spoke.

"May I help you, son? Thinking about getting a tattoo?" The shopkeeper was, surprisingly, an old man with no visible tattoos.

"Um... actually yeah. I just got the idea of what I wanted." Looking down at his ring, Harry decided what design he wanted. "You see my ring here?" Harry lifted his finger to the man, "I want the same design, except around my right bicep."

"That's easy enough. Would you like the silver and black swirls to move around? I could do that."

"That would be great. How long does this take?"

As he pushed Harry gently to a chair in the corner of the room, the old man responded with a 'not long.'

"This might burn a little bit, but the pain should be gone within ten minutes."

As Harry sat in the chair with the old man examining his arm, he was having second thoughts about the whole thing in general. Of course, before he had the chance to speak his mind, the old man pulled out his wand and cast a spell on Harry's arm. His arm felt like it was being burnt by a rope around his right bicep. Looking down at his arm, Harry could see a dark band around his arm that was glowing bright red. It didn't feel too bad compared to the other forms of pain Harry had been in, but it still hurt. As they sat there, waiting for the pain to recede, Harry started asking the old man some questions.

"Is there anyway to cover this up? In case I don't want it seen?"

"Actually, yes. All you have to do is run your wand tip across the skin where any tattoo touches and say _'cubrala'."_

Feeling extremely relieved, Harry paid the old man and left; a sleeping Sapphire in his arms. He began to head for the Leaky Cauldron. It was around noon now and Harry decided it was time to go to the Burrow. As he bought a pinch of Floo powder off of Tom, Harry could be seen with a wide smile on his face. He walked into the fireplace and, with a shout of 'The Burrow', he was gone.

**AT THE BURROW**: Around 9 A.M.

"Everybody done with breakfast? Good. Today is the day Harry is coming back and we need to make sure everything is perfect. Ginny, you're in charge of decorating the backyard. Fred, George, You two go with her to move the things that need to be moved. Ron, Hermione, you're with me. Everyone will start to arrive around 12:30 P.M. Let's go out and make Harry have a birthday he'll never forget."

Molly Weasley could be seen pacing in front of her children, as if she were a general in a war commanding her troops. As everyone dispersed into their little groups, you could just see the anticipation on everyone's faces. After believing he was dead for about three weeks, Harry Potter was making a reappearance at the Burrow today and the excitement was building up. Everyone decorated the Burrow, determined to make Harry's birthday perfect. Just as they were finishing up with putting a long table out in the garden around noon, Ginny and the twins could see the other three along with Mr. Weasley and Albus Dumbledore coming out with trays of food.

"We just set up the table mum, come over here." Fred shouted for the group to come their way. They had been getting everything set up outside, as there was more room to have everyone that was coming over out there.

As they began setting all the food on the table in a buffet style setting, they were all unaware of whom had just arrived.

With a blast of green flame, Harry walked out of the Weasley's fireplace. It was just as he remembered it. The living room was filled with couches of different sizes and color, not very fashionable or catalog style, but it was home. Just being back here made Harry feel loads better than he had been. Yes, he had been acting tough about his godfather's death, but the truth was that it still hurt. No matter what he tried to do, he always had the feeling that a part of himself was missing. That's why he had done all the training. Yes, he wanted to be prepared for Voldemort. Yes, he wanted to avenge his godfather's death; but most of all he wanted to get away from the pain. He wasn't a soulless creature and he felt the hurt of Sirius's death as deep a cut as if it were freshly done. That's why he had trained. He wanted to busy himself to where he didn't have time to think of Sirius. He would get over it with time, but for now he would keep acting. No one would replace Sirius, but just being in the house of his true family was helping him out.

Slowly, he started advancing through the house, searching for any sign of life. He went throughout the house without finding a soul; well, except for the ghoul in the attic. Finally, almost giving up, he started hearing laughter outside. As he looked through the window, what Harry saw brought an immediate smile to his face.

The twins were chasing Ron around the yard, waving a piece of candy in the air, obviously trying to get him to try it. Giving up after a small scolding from Mrs. Weasley, the twins returned to the rest of the group in mock-disappointment. After the small display was over with, it seemed as if the group decided to return to the Burrow for a minute. Harry, not knowing what else to do, just sat down by the backdoor in the kitchen, Sapphire in his lap, to wait for their return.

(**A/N**.Thought I'd leave it there and post, but since I've taken so long, I might as well give you a bit more.)

As they started approaching the backdoor of the Burrow, Albus Dumbledore could _feel_ a strong presence inside. Not able to recognize the powerful signature, he signaled for the others to wait. As he entered the house with his wand out, for the first time in quite a while, Albus Dumbledore was baffled.

There, sitting on the counter of the Weasley's kitchen, was a young man in around his late teens to early twenties. This is what surprised him the most. He was very powerful. Years of training had taught Dumbledore to read power levels to a certain extent and the young man was surpassing even Dumbledore's powers. Looking down at the wolf cub in his lap and petting it, the athletic looking young man looked innocent enough. Nevertheless, Dumbledore was still cautious.

"Name yourself stranger. What are you doing in this household?" As the others filed into the kitchen behind him, Dumbledore started his interrogations.

"Why professor, that hurts. As long as you've known me and you can't recognize your own students."

With those short words Harry lifted his head to make eye contact with his headmaster. The smile on his face was one that people would be hard pressed not to trust. Of course, this small action caused total silence in the kitchen that was only broken by his best friend Hermione.

"H-Harry? Is that you? What did you do to yourself?" Hermione was totally astounded. If this boy, no, _Man_ was her best friend Harry, then she shouldn't be thinking what she was thinking. The guy was gorgeous. What was she supposed to do with a guy like that as a brother-like friend? Still lost in her revere, Hermione jumped when the man answered her response.

"Got it in one. I knew it would be you that got it first Hermione. I could always count on you having the right answer." Not noticing the blush that graced Hermione's face, Harry was immediately engulfed between three women. Mrs. Weasley, Hermione, and even Ginny were fiercely hugging him at the same time.

"Alright ladies, let him breath will you?" Arthur Weasley got Harry off the hook with a merry laugh and went up to shake his hand. Before he could get there though, Dumbledore signaled for him to wait.

"How do we know you truly are Harry? For one thing, you look very different than you did a few weeks ago. Prove who you really are." Albus Dumbledore was still hooked on the man's power level. How could Harry be this powerful so quickly? He knew the boy had potential, but never in his dreams could Harry have been able to unlock that much power so quickly. He was either a fake or just unbelievable. Why had he left in the first place? One thing was for sure, Albus Dumbledore would get to the bottom of this.

The Smile Harry had been sporting before turned into the exact opposite. It wasn't the words Dumbledore had used, for he knew someone would have to ask, but the way he said it, and the accusatory look that he had in his eyes. He sent a glare Dumbledore's way before started thinking of how he would convince Dumbledore that he was truly Harry Potter.

A/N : Thanks to Lady of the Dragons2, Egyptian Flame, Kordolin, QueenWeasel, Lady of Masbolle, Bloodless Ace, vt, HPBeatles, OneeyeJane, Valron, TuxedoMac, Battlefield-addict, tom, Manda, highbrass, Johnapple, jbfritz, SanityEscapesMe, TGB, Aishwarya, animealam, and Elemental-sorcerer for reviewing the last chapter. Make sure you guys keep doing that! Sorry about the wait in this chapter. I'll hopefully have the next installment up soon.

Lady of the Dragons2: Sorry about the wait. I really like the animagus form also, it kind of came to me one day. Thought it'd be cool. Ginny will be a strong character, trust me on that. I'm not going to make them fall in love once they see each other. Harry doesn't really know her too well and needs to get familiar with her better traits. Dumbledore was kind of in here but the confrontation will mostly be in the next chapter.

Lady of Masbolle: This chapie answers one of your questions, for the others, you'll have to keep reading. The bow isn't exactly a long bow. It adjusts to harry's size. The bow will change when he grows or how he has to handle a situation.

Oneeyejane: Once again, sorry for the wait.

Valron: I just put in a number for the exchange rate. 10 is an easy number to work with so I chose that.

TuxedoMac: I'm glad you approve. Dr Gero is doing a great job and I'm starting to get used to writing more. More of the reactions will be seen next chapter.

Tom: Appreciate the concern about the hurricanes. Everything was fine andd it gave me the idea for the wind element.

Manda: Appreciate the compliments. The training with the arrows should be coming up soon so you'll be able to see them in action.

Johnapple: Sorry about the grammar. Hopefully you won't see it again in this chapter.

SanityEscapesMe: Don't worry. I hate it when Harry and Ginny get together all quickly. I like it best when it happens as an accident.

Animealam: I'll try to keep the H/G out of the center of the story. Thanks for reading my story, even though you don't like the pairing.

To all of you readers out there, make sure you hit that little button and review!


	9. FUN, GAMES, AND EXPLANATIONS

Disclaimer: No, I don't own Harry Potter or anything in this story besides the plot. I wish I did, but I also wish I were a Billionaire. Both wishes have not come true so, deal with it.

A/N: I Just really want to say that I am sorry for the lateness of this chapter. I know it sounds like I am just making up excuse after excuse but they are real. Three days after putting up the author's note of my progress, my computer broke. The thing just would not load Windows. A friend of the family looked at the PC and said he wasn't sure what was wrong with it. I do have a little brother, so maybe he did something to it. Anyways, I had to start the chapter over and had to hassle myself between working on it at school or at a friend's house. I also just had Districts for Wrestling and have been practicing a lot. I made it to Regionals! I don't know how long it will be till the next chapter is out. I will try to work on it as much as I can, but without a PC, it will be hard. I guess you guys have waited long enough for this chapter so go ahead and enjoy the read.

P.S. I just wanted to say thank you to my Beta Dr. Gero, he stuck with me even after my long pause.

**FUN, GAMES, AND EXPLANATIONS**

**BY: CHICANOSURFER01**

The whole kitchen was quiet. Harry Potter was the center of attention but was also completely silent. He was in a very pensive position; one hand petting the sleeping wolf cub in his lap, and the other hand resting on his chin. He was trying to figure out a way to prove his true identity to the elder man in front of him. How could he 'prove' himself? Living in a world where you could turn into someone else by drinking a potion made this particular question mighty difficult.

"I've got it!" Harry's words made everyone in the room jump. He'd finally figured out a way to prove himself to Dumbledore and he couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it sooner.

"Professor, I need you to put silencing wards around this room because what I'm about to say shouldn't be heard by anyone else." Harry wasn't sure he wanted to do this. He hadn't planned on telling the people in the room his secret so early on. He had decided to tell a very limited few about this certain piece of information. It planned out his life and, if it went one way, it planned his life to be short lived.

As Dumbledore began waving his wand around the room to set up the wards, Harry started explaining to his surrogate family about his 'proof' so that they didn't get totally freaked out about it.

"Now look everybody, what I'm about to reveal to you is very important and needs to be kept a secret. I have learned to live with what I have to do and I don't need anyone feeling sorry for me or anyone trying to make it seem better than it actually is."

As Dumbledore heard what Harry was saying, he stopped in his tracks. If Harry was about to say what he believed Harry was going to say, then it would most definitely prove to him of Harry's identity. Finishing up the wards, Dumbledore turned to Harry and gave him a look saying, 'get on with it.'

With a glare at Dumbledore, Harry began reciting his 'proof.'

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as an equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord shall be born as the seventh month dies..."_

After a deep inhale from Dumbledore, Harry began his explanation.

"This is the prophecy of Harry Potter... my prophecy. Known completely to only two people. Albus Dumbledore... and myself, Harry Potter."

Dumbledore knew he was in for it if he didn't explain his rash actions to Harry, (not to mention looking like an ass) so he extended his hand to the young man.

"Forgive me for my doubt young Harry, but we must truly be cautious in these dangerous times."

Although Harry knew that Dumbledore's mind was in the right place, he wasn't too sure where his heart lay. There was something different about the headmaster, but he couldn't put his finger on it. So, deciding it was dumb of him to confront Dumbledore about this feeling now, he shook the old man's hand.

As soon as the handshake was over, the questions from the others began. Their mouths threw out questions as fast as a faucet does water.

"Quiet!" The one word from Harry effectively closed the tap on the questions and he began his explanation.

"I found out about the prophecy after Sirius's death last year and am fine with it. It's not that much of a surprise is it? We know he's been after me since he's been back, and in a way this gives us hope. I have some sort of hidden power in me that could rid us of the monster we call Voldemort. I knew I was going to have to face him sooner or later, this just puts it into words that it will definitely happen. This scar on my forehead marked me as his equal and to tell you the truth, I'm glad it's me. I wouldn't wish this burden on anyone else. I'm not going to let it ruin my life. I'm still young and I will run my life as normally as possible. I'm not going to be afraid and let Voldemort ruin my life. If we do that, he's already won."

Silence. Once again the kitchen was totally quiet. They knew this boy in front of them was only sixteen years old, but his words were that of someone who had been through many learning experiences. You could tell he was completely serious in his words by the look in his eyes. What he didn't know was that he wouldn't be in this war alone. The people in that kitchen had all vowed to themselves that they would do everything in their power to help this boy... this man, to achieve his destiny.

"Well guys, are there anymore questions?" Harry broke the silence.

"Why don't you just go upstairs and get ready for you party Harry. Lunch is already out in the garden. Ron, show him up to his room." Mrs. Weasley stopped the inevitable rush of questions that would come if they were to continue. She wanted Harry to forget about his worries and have a fun birthday. They had been planning the party before Harry's reappearance, in hope of his return. Mrs. Weasley had planned on making it a small celebration within the family, but when Ginny received Harry's letter, she decided to go all out. She Wrote and sent invitations to the friends that Ron, Hermione, and Ginny suggested should attend and had Dumbledore organize the entertainment she wanted.

**

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**

Walking up the stairs, Harry and Ron didn't speak a word. Harry wasn't sure if something was wrong or not, but something was different. Just as he was about to confront his best friend about this, Ron stopped in front of a door and started to speak.

"You'll be staying in Percy's old room, mom said you might as well use it, he won't be."

"Thanks Ron. I am gonna miss sleeping in your room though." With a smile, Harry opened the door and entered. Before closing the door, Ron said something that told Harry that things were still good between them.

"I really missed you Harry. You had me worried sick." With that Ron turned and went back downstairs. Harry could tell he was mad about the way Harry disappeared, but that was just Ron. Harry knew to just let Ron cool down for a while before talking to him about anything.

**

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**

Out of the shower and dressed, Harry looked through the window, which had a view of the garden, and saw that a lot of people had arrived. It seemed as if it was going to be a pretty big party. There seemed to be a stage with a band setting up and even what looked like a small water park. It definitely looked like the Weasleys had gone all out for him. Not wanting to keep them waiting, Harry left Sapphire in his room and headed downstairs. The first thing he was dying to do was get into the food. Although he had only eaten a few hours before, he felt like he could eat a whole Hippogriff. Walking through the backdoor, Harry was immediately met with silence. Everyone from the party, the majority of which were his school friends, had turned to face him, and jaws dropped.

"I seem to be doing that a lot lately, I wonder why?"

Harry's short statement brought everyone out of their revere and started a stamped of people towards him.

After fifteen minutes of 'Happy Birthday's, 'What happened to you's, and compliments on his new look, Harry finally made it to the food.

**

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**

By the look on Harry Potter's face, he was thoroughly enjoying himself. He had just gotten reacquainted with most of his school friends and things seemed to be going back to normal. He had totally killed the food table and was now ready for some fun. Just as if they had read his mind, a group of his friends, including Ron and Hermione, walked up to him.

"Hey Harry! You want to go to the water slides? Dumbledore set it up for the day so let's take advantage of it shall we?" Ron looked as if he was ready to start running for his bathing suit but Hermione's next words stopped him.

"You don't even have to change Harry. Just come on, the attendant will transfigure our clothes into bathing suits for us."

"Well what are we waiting for then? Let's get over there, I'm ready to have some fun."

Harry started running towards the mini-water park with his group of friends behind him. The whole first half of the summer was filled with all work and no play. If anyone knew what Harry had been through, they would understand just how much this birthday party meant to him.

Arriving at the water park entrance, the attendant, a very cheerful witch, transfigured their clothes and took their wands for safe keeping. As Harry observed his friends and the people around them, he found three things that stood out like bright lights in the dark. The crazy thing about the three figures, was that they all happened to be female.

After looking at their faces closer, Harry could have slapped himself. He knew all three of the ladies. One, the dark haired, tanned skin girl was none other than his fellow Gryffindor, Parvati Patil. She had the figure, like the other two, of a goddess, and Harry couldn't believe he hadn't noticed her before this. Well he'd never seen her in a bikini before, so that could be it also. The bad thing about the other two women was that he knew he shouldn't be thinking the thoughts he was thinking about these particular girls. One had light brown hair and the other had bright red hair. He couldn't believe that he had been having the thoughts he was having about Hermione Granger and Ginny Weasley. They were supposed to be friends, if not, like sisters to him. Although Hermione was wearing a one piece bathing suit and Ginny was wearing a more modest bikini than Parvati, Harry could tell the summer had been good to them.

Shaking the thoughts out of his head, Harry, along with his friends, ran up the stairway to the first water slide. They all jumped into the slide and went through all the crazy loops and turns that the slide had.

Harry was thoroughly enjoying himself. They had all been on the slides for hours and it had gotten dark in the mean time. The band was still playing in the clearing and dinner tables had been set up in a circle adjacent to the stage to make a dance floor. Deciding it was time to eat, they headed out of the water park. After getting the attendant to dry them off and change them into more formal clothes, they headed for the music stage.

Harry wasn't as anxious to get to the dancing as much as the food. He had never been drawn to the dancing scene. He wasn't the best dancer, so he decided to sit this activity out. This idea was totally squashed when the first girl came up and asked him to dance.

"Harry? Would you like to dance?" Looking up, Harry saw Parvati Patil standing there, looking quite beautiful in her shimmering pink gown.

"Why hello there Parvati. It would be my pleasure." Trying to play it cool and ignoring the butterflies he was feeling, Harry grabbed her hand and took her out to the middle of the dance floor. There was a fast song playing when she had first asked him to dance, but it soon changed to a slow one. Although Harry was nervous about stepping on her feet, he had a calm exterior as they drew closer for the song. Remembering how it was done in the Yule Ball in their forth year, he put one hand on her lower back and took one of her hands in the other.

"So how has your Summer been Parvati? Have you done anything exciting?" Harry had decided to make an attempt at small talk and find out a little more about the girl in his arms.

"Well, I went to visit my aunt in Paris a few weeks ago. It was quite beautiful. I would love to move there after graduation. Everything there is just so scenic. How 'bout yourself? It seems to me that the Summer was very good to you Mr. Potter." At Parvati's words a slight blush came over Harry's face. He knew his body had changed, but he wasn't totally used to the reactions of people.

"I stayed at my relative's house most of the summer, but spent a lot of time studying. There's really not much to do there but studying and exercising. I guess that's why I've changed." Harry purposely omitted the time he was "missing" from the world. He didn't know Parvati well enough to tell her the details of the past few weeks.

"May I cut in?" Before Parvati was able to respond she was tapped on the should by Harry's Best friend, Hermione.

"Of course you may. Thanks for the dance Harry." After giving Harry a kiss on the cheek Parvati left the dance floor.

"Enjoying your party Harry?" Hermione was looking stunning in a dazzling white dress.

"I'm having the best time of my life. I wouldn't trade it for the world." Harry knew this was the honest truth. No one had ever thrown him a birthday party before; this was a new experience for him.

"Well I'm glad. We've been planning this ever since you sent Ginny the letter." All of a sudden Hermione's demeanor changed from happy to agitated. "You had us worried sick Harry! Where were you anyways? You just up and disappeared for three weeks without an owl, a note, nothing! I grew more frantic with each passing day. I'm not sure what I would have done if you hadn't come back." A few tears escaped Hermione's eyes and Harry drew her into a hug. He felt bad having worried her so much. He deeply cared about Hermione and wished that no harm ever came her way.

"I promise I won't leave like that ever again. I know I have some explaining to do, but now's not the time. I'll tell you and the others everything later tonight, after the party."

Satisfied with his response, Hermione drew away from Harry's embrace and stood up on her tippy toes to kiss him on the cheek. She gave him a smile and walked away. He decided it was time for a drink and left for the refreshments table. As he drew closer to the bar he noticed A redhead debating over what she wanted to drink. Remembering that he needed to speak to her about his "disappearance" also, he decided to approach her.

Slowly he came up behind her and startled her when he whispered in her ear. "Hello Ginny."

"Harry! What are you trying to do? Scare me to death?" Steadying her breath, she smiled and gave Harry a quick hug.

"Sorry Ginny, I just couldn't resist. Are you having fun?" Leaning against the table, Harry grabbed himself a Butterbeer and took a quick swig.

"Of course I am. Who wouldn't have fun in this environment? Plus, now that your back, everyone can stop worrying and celebrate." Ginny had begun with a smile but ended with her eyes looking down.

Harry gently lifted her head so that she was looking at him again. "About that; I promised Hermione that I would explain all of what I've been doing this summer after the party. I know I owe you an explanation, so I'll talk to you after everyone goes home and tell you where to meet."

"Thanks Harry. I'll see you then." Harry watched Ginny's retreating back until he felt someone coming up behind him.

"Harry!" None other than Remus Lupin tackled Harry into a hug."Where have you been Harry? Why did you leave in the first place? You have no idea how I felt when they said they couldn't find you. I'm sorry Harry but I just couldn't lose you too, I've lost almost everyone else."

Remus was nearly hysterical. Harry had thought that he had taken Sirius' death badly, but then realized that his disappearance must have pushed him over the edge.

"Don't worry Remus, I'm not going anywhere. I didn't mean to upset everyone, I just needed some time to myself. I won't be going anywhere anytime soon." Harry was beginning to feel really bad about the reactions his disappearance caused for the people he cared about; He hadn't meant to disappear, it just sort of happened.

**

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**

As the party came to a close, Harry said goodbye to all his school friends. Hermione would be staying at the Weasleys', in Ginny's room, making it easier to get out of the house later on for their talk.

"You never opened your presents Harry. Wouldn't you like to see what you got?" Mrs. Weasley had realized that Harry never mentioned the pile of presents in front of the stage.

"What presents Mrs. Weasley?" As Harry turned in a full circle he spotted the gifts Mrs. Weasley was talking about. "Are you saying that all those are for me?" He asked in disbelief. There had to be at least fifty presents in the pile, more than twice the amount that Dudley had gotten on his last birthday. He was about to start tearing through the pile but remember the talk he was having with the girls later on. Wanting to have everyone in bed as early as possible, he made the decision to open them tomorrow. "I think I'll just open them tomorrow, I'm kind of tired."

"You're right Harry, it has been a long day. Everyone inside then, time for bed." Mrs. Weasley shooed everyone inside saying eleven O'clock was too late for everyone to still be up.

As they started walking inside, Harry told Hermione to meet him in the living room at midnight with Ginny. She had agreed and went up to bed to wait out the hour.

**

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**

Midnight saw the three teenagers walking out the backdoor to the garden.

"Harry? Shouldn't Ron be here also? He is our best friend too." Hermione was a little confused when she saw Harry in the living room alone. She was sure that Harry would want Ron to be here too.

" After explaining Ron's lack of attendance, Harry began explaining how, after dealing with Sirius' death, he didn't want to be the one the prophecy says will be killed. He told them how he started training at the Dursleys' and explained his excessive studying. Just as he was getting to his quest for the elements he was distracted by a loud screech. Looking up he noticed a large black bird coming down towards him. The bird turned out to be a black falcon that just oozed evil. Harry didn't know why, but he had a very bad feeling about the letter in the falcon's claws.

Screeching one more time, the hawk dropped the letter in Harry's lap and flew off. As soon as Harry touched the envelope it opened on its own and released a large green light. From the light emerged a skull with a snake entwined in it. The dark mark was seen in the sky above the Burrow's garden. If they were surprised when the mark appeared, they were even more shocked when it started speaking. The voice of the mark was one Harry knew very well. It was embedded in his mind since he was one. It was the voice of Voldemort. Harry could never confuse the snake like slither in his voice and laugh.

"_**The Boy-Who-Lived is one year older,**_

_**now attacks will get much bolder.**_

_**Beware the times when you feel colder,**_

_**an orphan can't cry on his mum's shoulder."**_

They couldn't soak in the poem to full effect before there was a blinding flash and they were surrounded. The question was, what were they surrounded by?

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Thanks to: JoesephThomasIIII, Lady of the Dragon, Tuxedomac, Kordolin, Battlefield-addict, Organiclyme, EternalSleep, jbfritz, David M. Potter, Sanity escapes me, Tanydwr, voxenking, eclipse, Screwylouie12, Faceless One, little Marauder, Bloodless Ace, Stikye, Aishwarya, Lelia Ayita, Breakingdarules, dobbiessweetie, Dranix, yaara, sirius and remus, Silver Warrior, Kaleena Mason, Lady Quill, babs, jwilliams, dobbys-stinger, Elemental-sorcerer, TGB, Jarno, HaliOmani, firebirdgs, Night-Owl123, BferBear, Farlmot, Treck White Merlin, fireflyer-flight11, babyHarry, Magicgirl10, adora-chillwind, Thanach, Khadon, Ibozun meg, gaul1, Sirius009, Miss.Understood, Mandaevelyn, The 1116th's spy, MoonFireFire, nogoalielikeme, volo, Serena24, renagade41, Lillian Marie Potter, Ashley, gman15, Wytil, haydenrocks14, amu3038, Queen Victoria, HeWhoComesWithTheDawn, QueenWeasel, happy dude, Fallen Legacy88, ryn the white panther, Dragonstorm316, argos-the-argonath, Jubexchix, foxfur, Tiffany, Beth5572, bandgsecurityyaw, and huneydukes2004 for reviewing. I probably don't deserve all the reviews after making you wait so long for this chapter.

Lady of the Dragon: I really like writing about Sapphire. I wanted to add a new character into the story but decided on the pet instead. The confrontation is in here and also a little bit of Ginny.

TuxedoMac: Thanks, I've been working on the suspense. The true reactions to Sapphire and Harry's changes will be in the next chapter. Harry isn't as experienced as Dumbledore so, no he doesn't know how to read power levels. He doesn't even know how powerful he truly is.

Stikye: I have Harry relax a little bit in this chapter. I know I had him be really serious in th other chapters, I did it on purpose. He had his anger drive him into ultimate training mode but now he's slowly going back to normal Harry mode.

Babs: It might be a while before Harry and Ginny get together but it might not be. Harry is a guy and has normal teenage hormones. Oh, and you can definitely expect more powers.

TGB: Harry will work more on his animagus transformation later on. You'll see how the transformations affect him. I don't think Dumbledore will car if Harry brought the animals with him, especially after the way the headmaster has treated his student. I'm sorry about the slow upates, I can't help it. I seem to attract bad luck. Plus, it being my senior year and wrestling season, I have very little time to write.

Fallen-Legacy88: I don't think anyone else noticed or maybe they got was I was trying to say so lets keep it our little secret. I did research to see what a Jamaican breakfast was like, but I guess I didn't do enough.

Wytil: I won't leave Harry and Ginny off to the side. It just won't be the center of the story. Your review truly made me laugh, a female Draco? Who would of thunk it. Thanks for your kind words about my father. He seems to be doing a lot better now. I have picked up a lot of his old responsibilities but I'm just glad he's back home.

Jubexchix: Sorry about breaking my promise. I didn't meant to, I just seem to attract bad luck. Thanks for the review, Later.

I hope Everyone enjoyed this chapter, I'll get the next one up as soon as I can. Now that your done reading, you know what to do. Hit that little button and review. TTYL,

Chicanosurfer01


	10. Just Another Day in the Life of Harry Po...

Disclaimer: No I don't own Harry Potter. If I said I did, what would you think of me? You couldn't prove I wasn't JKR, you can't see my face can you? . . . I just don't want to get sued so, I'm not JKR and I don't own Harry Potter or anything else in this story besides the plot.

A/N: I tried to get this chapter up as quickly as possible. I still don't have a working computer. I'm giving up on my old one and getting a new one, even if I don't know what went wrong with my old one. I know there's some confusion to the double (or was it triple?) Posting of the last chapter. I was left a few reviews, after my first post, that said they couldn't see the chapter, so I re-posted it. Still some reviewers couldn't see it, so I re-posted it a third time. I did do it on purpose, I'm not stupid, it was that was having problems. I just happened to be online when I was receiving these reviews. I'm sorry for the confusion of some, but I wanted everyone to be able to read the chapter. I feel I have an obligation to every one of my readers. Thanks to Dr Gero for still being my beta and to all my reviewers for showing their support. Anyways, here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy.

**Just another day in the life of Harry Potter**

**BY CHICANOSURFER01**

Harry could _feel_ the presence of four very powerful beings around him and the young women. Due to the fog that clouded his vision, he wasn't exactly sure what they were. One thing he did notice was that he was cold, really cold. It was as penetrating a cold as that of a Dementor being nearby, but without the bad thoughts swimming around in your head. Harry was preparing himself for battle. Whatever it was that was out there was out for his blood. He summoned all of his battle gear to him and magicked it onto himself. Turning to the girls, who were looking at him in awe, he began to explain his battle plan.

"I don't know what's out there right now, but you two have to get back in the house. On my signal I want you to start running for the Burrow without looking back. If anyone is still asleep, I want you to wake them up and floo to the Leaky Cauldron. When I am done with whatever is out there, I'll go there myself." He wanted to sound confident in order to keep their worrying at a minimum. The truth was that he worried about what could be out there. The fact that he could feel how powerful the things out there were, was not helping the fear factor.

"But Harry! You don't even know what's out there! Don't you want us to stay and help?" Hermione was trying to talk Harry out of fighting alone while Ginny was shocked silent.

"You guys don't even have your wands with you. If you truly want to help me, make it to the house and get everyone out of the house safely. I'm going to clear the fog, and as soon as I do I want you to run to the Burrow as fast as you can. Understood?"

After the girls nodded their understanding, Harry raised his hands and used the wind element to blow away the cool fog. Although he wasn't an expert at controlling the elements yet, he had been practicing and had the basics down to an art.

As soon as the wind dissipated the fog, the girls started running. Harry screamed at them to not look back, because what he was facing would totally stop them in their tracks. In front of him were four of the most amazing and beautiful creatures he had ever seen. Harry wasn't sure what species to classify them in. They obviously looked like smaller than average dragons; but looking as though they were made of ice. The white scales that covered their lizard-like bodies seemed to glisten in the moonlight. The only thing that he could compare them to was the finest of diamonds. The only thing that stopped him from admiring the creatures was the blast of ice that one shot at him. As Harry dodged the eruption of ice, he came to a conclusion to what the creatures were. They were ice dragons. Dragons that had supposedly gone extinct many years ago, or so he had read in his COMC book.

'_How could Voldemort send an **extinct** species after me? There's something fishy going on.' _Although Harry was trying to think of how these beings came to be here, he still had to worry about how to get away from them alive.

The dragons had been circling Harry in the small clearing by the garden. They seemed to be waiting for something, but Harry was totally clueless as to what that something was. Suddenly, as if there had been a sign, all four dragons shot what looked like thin spears of ice from their mouths, straight at Harry. Going into action, Harry pulled out his dual swords and started batting the oncoming onslaught of ice away from him. Just as another barrage of ice was coming for him, he called on the wind element and aimed his hands at the ground. The blast of wind that came from his hands sent him twenty feet into the air. Taking advantage of the unsuspecting dragons, Harry launched a full aerial assault of spells from his staff. The sudden bombardment of Reductor curses left the dragons temporarily in pain. What Harry forgot was that dragons were very repellant to magic; the curses just seemed to anger the dragons after the temporary lapse of pain. They reinforced their assailment of ice spears by twofold, and Harry was forced to put away his staff and go back to batting the spears away with his swords, still mindful of the blast of wind that he had to perform to keep himself from crashing into the ground. He then had to resort to jumping, dodging and blocking, which he realized he could only do for so long.

During all of his jumping and dodging, Harry had managed to get away from most of the spears that were shot at him. Of course most doesn't mean _all_ of them. One of the spears had stuck right into his mid-section. Although the spear that hit him wasn't the thickest one of the barrage; imagine having an icicle, an inch in diameter, slammed into your abdomen, and see how you do.

"Great Mother of Merlin does this hurt!" Harry was over the shock of the impact and was feeling the wave of pain wash over him. The ice hadn't gone all the way through, but had still penetrated more than halfway through his body. There was blood flowing out around the edges of the spear, showing he was badly hurt. Knowing he couldn't stay still for long, Harry made a very hasty decision. He used his sword to slice the ice as close to his body as he could. He didn't want to pull the ice out in case the blood would start flowing heavily; but, on the positive side, the ice was beginning to numb the pain.

Knowing he wouldn't be able to move enough to dodge the dragon's attacks, Harry re-sheathed his swords and enlarged his staff. The ice that he had batted away from him had broken on the ground and created a mist of ice around him. It had given him enough time to pull out his staff and put a shield charm on himself. As soon as the mist around him dispersed, Harry noticed that all four dragons had moved together about twenty yards in front of him. They were turned away from him and looking down at something.

'_They must think I'm finished,' _Harry thought, _'but what exactly are they looking at?'_

Wanting to see what they were doing, Harry decided to chance it and get closer to the group. He put away his staff and transformed into the Eclipsowolf, using his powers to sink into the shadows. Although he had transformed, the pain from the spear hadn't diminished. He had to walk slowly and carefully towards them, but thankfully could not be detected. Stopping about ten feet away from the dragons, he saw what they were looking at. There was a wizard in a Death Eater ensemble that was, 'talking' to the dragons.

'_That can't be right. Is he actually talking to those dragons? I've never heard of anything like this before.'_

The wizard, the depth in his voice gave away that he was male, seemed to dismiss the dragons. They bowed to him before disappearing in a gust of wind from their wings. The wizard however, did not apparate away. Instead, he walked toward the spot where Harry had previously occupied and looked around. He seemed to panic when Harry was not there. Harry could see him bend down and look at the small pool of blood on the ground that had come from the wound in Harry's abdomen. Looking around quickly, the wizard mumbled something and disappeared.

Harry, starting to feel woozy, walked out to the garden. He wasn't sure what just happened.

'_How did that man control those dragons? What does Voldemort have up his sleeve this time? Oh well, I'm just gonna rest for a while; I've earned it._'

Transforming back to his human form, Harry banished his battle gear and laid down on the grass, passing out from the blood loss. The last thing he heard before letting the darkness overtake him was a series of pops, indicating that at least a dozen wizards and witches had apparated into the area.

**BREAK**

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Meanwhile . . . 

When Ginny and Hermione had made it to the house, they immediately ran to Mr. And Mrs. Weasley's bedroom. As luck would have it, the elder Weasleys were nowhere to be seen. With a little quick thinking, Hermione had a plan to help her best friend.

"Ginny, if your parents aren't here right now, they have to be at Grimmauld Place. They wouldn't leave us unless there was a meeting going on. I want you to wake your brothers while I floo to Grimmauld place and get help for Harry. Meet me there as fast as you can."

Without a second thought, the girls split up and ran to complete their part of the plan. The looks on the girls' faces were ones of pure determination. They weren't sure what was going on outside, only that they were going to fulfill Harry's requests and get him help as soon as possible.

Just as Hermione had gotten to the fireplace, Ginny, who had already woken the twins, was on her way to wake up Ron. Knowing that Ron was a very deep sleeper, Ginny ordered the twins to pick Ron up and take him downstairs. She knew there was no time to waste and had no time for explanations. Once downstairs, they flooed to Grimmauld place and saw Dumbledore giving out orders to the gathered group of adults. Apparently Hermione had already explained the situation and Dumbledore was taking action.

"Tonks and Arthur, go notify the ministry of an attack at the Burrow. Any magic used by Harry will need to be dismissed as being self-defense. Poppy, go to Hogwarts and wait for us in the hospital wing. I have a feeling we will be needing your expertise. The rest of you apparate to the Burrow; let's hope Mr. Potter is still safe. Remember the wards, make sure to apparate on the outskirts of the anti-apparition wards, about 50 feet away from the garden." With orders given out, Dumbledore and the rest of the Order disappeared in a synchronized pop.

A good five to ten minutes had passed since the girls were out in the garden with Harry. Anything could have happened by now, they were just wishing that Harry got out of there safely.

**BREAK**

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"_WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE WAS NO BODY_!" Lord Voldemort was furious. How could a plan that went so perfect end up going so wrong? He wanted the 'boy-who-lived' to become the 'boy-that-died' as soon as possible. 

"Forgive me my Lord. There was nothing I could do about it. One moment he was there, the other he wasn't. I assure you that he was wounded. In place of his body was a small pool of blood, where surely one of the ice spears injured him." The rather portly Death Eater was reporting to his master of the mission he had just returned from. He was the newest recruit of Voldemort's forces and, although he didn't know it personally, was favored by his master due to his rare ability. He was one of the few descendants of dragon-herders, who had the ability to bring dragons into their control through their ability to speak to them. What this man wanted was power and Voldemort would pave the way to his goal. He knew he would never be as powerful as the Dark Lord; but he wouldn't mind being right under him after taking over the wizarding world.

"Wormtail!" Voldemort called in the treacherous rat, ready to give him his orders.

"Yes, my lord? How may I serve you?" Wormtail was visibly shaking but was also ready to follow any orders given to him by his master.

"Go to the Weasley home and check out the situation. I need to know what happened to the boy. Do not be seen and report to me as soon as you return."

With a 'Yes Master' to Voldemort, Wormtail disappeared.

Voldemort stood and turned his attention to the still kneeling man in front of him. Voldemort decided to teach the new recruit what happens when you make him angry.

"One thing that you will have to learn is to take orders and fulfill them down to every detail. Most likely Dumbledore has already found the boy and he is in his custody. Now I cannot send my men to collect the boy. He should have been brought back with you. Not completing your mission fully is failure. I do not tolerate failure." Without warning, the Dark Lord took out his wand and inflicted the Cruciatus on the plump wizard. For the next ten minutes, all you could hear in Voldemort's chamber were the screams of pain and the cries for mercy.

**BREAK**

* * *

For the first time in many years, Albus Dumbledore was afraid. When he arrived at the Burrow with his fellow Order members, he wasn't sure what to expect. Seeing the body of Harry Potter laying in a pool of blood would be a scary sight to any wizard. It was like seeing the only hope of the wizarding world slipping away into the darkness. 

Immediately Dumbledore went into action. Creating a Portkey out of his pocket watch, the headmaster sent Harry to Hogwarts where Madame Pomfrey was waiting.

"Search the area; I want to make sure that none of Voldemort's minions are around. Look for any clues in finding out what happened here tonight. I'm afraid young Harry will not be able to tell us what happened any time soon."

**BREAK**

* * *

When Harry Potter appeared in the Hogwarts Hospital wing, Madame Pomfrey was not surprised that Harry had arrived battered, beaten, and bloody all over. Nevertheless, when she examined the bleeding that was coming from his abdomen, she cringed at the piece of ice that was causing the bleeding. Knowing that her favorite patient was closer to death than at any other point in his life, Poppy Pomfrey got to work. 

"What have you gotten yourself into this time child? You can't go a year without seeing me can you?" Muttering an examining spell, Pomfrey watched as Harry was engulfed in the blue light from her wand. Amazingly enough, none of Harry's injuries were caused by spells or curses. There was a magical property involved in the ice that was in his abdomen, probably the reason the ice wasn't totally melted yet. Fixing all his cuts and bruises, including the gaping whole in his stomach. She had gotten rid of the ice and fixed the wound. He had lost a lot of blood so he was also given blood replenishing potions and many types of nutritional potions. There wasn't much more she could do for the young man before her. She knew he was going to be fine, but wasn't sure when he would be waking up. Thinking there would be very little activity from her patient anytime soon, she began to close the curtains. Of course, not expecting any activity, she was surprised when Harry began to a glow a bright green and started floating a foot above his bed. As quickly as it had come, it went, leaving a baffled nurse in the Hogwarts infirmary.

**BREAK**

* * *

"We want to be taken to see Harry right now!" Ginny and Hermione were furious. Ginny, having that famous Weasley temper, was letting Dumbledore know how mad she actually was. "I don't care where you sent him to, you are going to take us there right now!" 

"I'm afraid I can't do that right now Miss Weasley. He is currently located at Hogwarts. If it would appeal to you, you may see him in the morning."

Accepting defeat, Ginny turned away and fled upstairs, wiping at the tears that had fallen unknowingly.

"Can you at least tell us what happened? I think we have a right to know we _were_ there." Hermione was just fishing for answers now. She was worried for what could have happened to Harry, and would only find repose through Dumbledore's answers. Unfortunately, Dumbledore denied her the peace of mind she wanted with his lack of answers.

"I must apologize Miss Granger. I'm afraid I have not gotten the chance to question Mr. Potter. I'm sure that at the moment he is resting and will not wake again tonight. I will return tomorrow so that you may visit with Harry. Goodnight Miss Granger." Feeling dismissed, Hermione ran to find Ginny. She was sure that she wasn't going to sleep anytime soon, and was positive that Ginny wouldn't be either.

Turning to the group of adults, he was sorry that he couldn't answer most of their questions. The truth was, for the first time in a long time, he was very confused. His long life of experiences made surprising him very hard, and confusing him near impossible.

"What happened Albus? Is Harry alright?" Having stayed at Grimmauld place, Mrs. Weasley was very worried about her surrogate son.

"I'm afraid I can't answer those questions as fully as you would like me to. I do know that Harry was involved in a battle of some sort and horribly wounded. I sent him to Hogwarts to get treated. We will not receive answers until Mr. Potter awakens. How did the ministry react? Arthur? Tonks?"

"Here's the thing sir: there was no underage magic detected at the Burrow, in fact there were no spells or curses detected being used. Either Harry didn't use magic, or there is something weird going on." Tonks wore a look of confusion on her face. The ministry employees thought them crazy when they said there was an attack going on at the Burrow.

"Just another question to add to the ever growing list to ask Mr. Potter. I'm sure he will be able to answer any questions we may have when he recovers from his injuries." Dumbledore had no idea as to what had occurred this night. There was no way to explain the events of the night without the boy-who-lived. Ever since his arrival there were many questions to be asked, and now that list of questions was growing with every hour that passed.

**BREAK**

* * *

"Where am I?" Harry Potter was very confused. He had appeared in front of a beautiful palace, but couldn't figure out where in the world he or the palace were located. Deciding to explore, Harry walked up the steps to the huge double doors. Before he could push against them, the doors opened of their own accord. What he found on the other side was both surprising and confusing. 

"Hello Harry. How's life going?"

Harry just stared at them in shock. He's in the middle of nowhere, in a beautiful palace, and all they could ask was how his life was going?

"Well guys, I never expected to see you again anytime soon. I'm doing fine, but I have a question for you: What in the world am I doing here, and what do the Elemental Guardians want with me this time?"

TBC...

* * *

Thanks to: Khadon, Kaleena Mason, the phantom114, Lil Lillian, wierdcraz24, Circe Visigoth, Nitrous,SeekerTLK, Hewhocomeswiththedawn, athenakitty, Nightwing 509, nandhp, WJENKSREADER, jbfritz, Bloodless Ace, Dude, honeydukes2004, Lady of the Dragon, MandaEvelyn, TuxedoMac, SHAWNIE, Dr Gero, Nutty AL, HPFANATIC-21, foxychibi, xrevolution, TammLSlark, hp fan 30, ami1993, jwilliams14, Dragonic, Gohan00, Grangerfan, padfootsonenonly, Goddess of the Black Rose, Silver Warrior, mosleyn001, and Lord of the Pit for reviewing, I really appreciate. I don't know if all of you that review know how much you guys help me with the story. I'm writeing this fic to entertain you so, whatever I think you'll like will be in here. I like to hear all the stuff you like and dislike about my story. Thanks for all of those that reviewed and thanks to those that are also just reading also. 

**Responses:**

**Hewhocomeswiththedawn: **There's a reason Ron isn't with them, you'll see later on in the story.

**Huneydukes2004: **Thanks. As I said above, there's a reason for Ron's absence shown later in the story. I'm not sure when I'm gonna get Harry and Ginny together. If all goes as planned, there will be information on the relationship in either the next chapter or the one after that. I never said anything about Ron and Hermione getting together, I haven't decided on them yet. Later.

**Lady of the Dragon**: There will be more Ginny in the upcoming chapters. This one involves her a little bit more but nowhere near as much as I'll involve her in later chapters.

**Padfootsonenonly**: I'm really glad your reading my fic even when H/G isn't your thing. I hope you find my writing interesting either way. Oh, and as sure you were about them benig surrounded by dementors, you were wrong. I never planned on putting dementors there, I just wanted people to think that, I wanted to be a little more original.

**Goddess of the Black Rose**: I wanted Harry to have to work for his powers. As you can see in this chapter, even though he has the power, he doesn't know how to use it yet. I don't like the stories that make Harry to strong too quick. It takes the fun out of writing. Thanks for catching the tattoo thing, I actually thought I had put in that he covered them up with the spell but must have missed it. I'll have to go back and fix it later.

**Wierdcraz24**: Thanks a lot, I wanted the envelope to show that even with all the protection that Dumbledore puts on Harry, a simple letter, from voldemort nonetheless, can get through his defense and potentially harm Harry. I'm sorry to say I know nothing of this C2 you speak of. I've seen the little button from when I log-in but I'm not too sure what it's about. Would you please explain it to me. Either way, I'm sure it's an honor that your inviting me.

This chapter isn't as long as my recent chapters but I wanted to stop there for a reason. The summer will be speeding up in the next couple chapters and I will have them returning to hogwarts in, hopefully 3-4 chapters. Now, as your reading my last little bit of the chapter, I can tell you read, what I need you to do is review, even if it's just saying you like it or don't like it. THANKS!

Till next chapter


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